


The Hobbit, or There and Back Again, and The Very Unexpected Journey of a Finn

by Finfan89



Category: The Hobbit - All Media Types
Genre: Adventure, Excitement, Gen, Just About Everything, Slow blooming love, Violence, cursing
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-05-11
Updated: 2015-07-31
Packaged: 2018-03-30 02:17:26
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 32,467
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3919126
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Finfan89/pseuds/Finfan89
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Where an object is found and a sentence such as: '' VOI PERKELE!'' is the only appropriate statement to utter in a situation where you've ended up in the middle of nowhere in an unfamiliar land.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own the fine work of J.R.R Tolkien. I only own the adventurer I myself created.  
> …...

 

 

  _The Hobbit, or There and Back Again_

_And The Very Unexpected_

 

_Journey of a Finn_

_**...** _

**Chapter 1** _Where the hell Am I?_

**Summary: In a forest of green, an object is found and a sentence such as: '' VOI PERKELE!'' is an appropriate statement to utter in a situation where you've suddenly and unexpectedly ended up in the middle of nowhere in an unfamiliar land.**

**_**Disclaimer:** _ ** **_**I do not own the fine work of** _ ** **_**J.R.R Tolkien.** _ ** **_**I only own the adventurer I myself created.** _ **

…...

I had always known in my sane state of mind that falling into another world or dimension through unexpected portals that just popped out of nowhere without any warning or fall through TV- screens or computer screens, was something that just didn't happen to sane people.

Except maybe in peoples wildest dreams as they sleep comfortably in their beds.

I had read so many fanfictions on my computer of such wild stories happening. Some stories were the written content is well thought through and some that had not been so good with Mary-Sue tendencies (then again, some were pretty good even with the slight touch of Mary-Sue: ishness).

And some that only needed half a chapter to determine that they had been unworthy OF reading and so Mary-Sue: ish that it was more than a little annoying to I detain from elaborating which ones exactly I did not deem worth reading further.

Well, I had believed that going to another world (or dimension) was simply in the impossible zone and so out of reach of reason.

Until such a fate did happen to me.

An adventure (or more like nightmare) had been shoved on me out of the blue like some great big boulder. Just in a manner that was unexpected, and not at all welcome if anyone had been there to ask me about my opinion at that very time it happened.

And to be bluntly honest, what sane sort of person with 'a brain' would purposefully want to be taken to another world without their consent? Without promise that you'd see your beloved family again? To face danger that could kill them?

UGH!

And in case anyone wants to know if I'd have rather taken a boulder or an adventure on the day I had found myself completely lost and confused, I would have very much have preferred that boulder.

Well, this had been a small part of my less than savory opinion. At least in the very beginning.

Later, as I went through many experiences in the course of my journey, I did learn a lot about bravery, friendship, and ''Finnish Sisu'', which would be the best described as ''Finnish perseverance''. The word perseverance meaning steady persistence in a course of action, a purpose, a state, etc in spite of difficulties, obstacles, or discouragement.

Especially discouragement.

I even found my love. My true love.

But that love didn't come without the big choices I had to make for my future. And those choices were to affect not just myself, but others as well.

...

Anyway, about this part of my life...

My adventure began one fine Autumn morning. There was excellent weather neither too warm, nor too cold.

No rain.

Just the right temperature in the air to go out in the woods to seek out funnel- chanterelles (yellow-foots) in the pine- woods of ' Kuominanmäki ' near my grandparent's old wooden house that had been built with help from my grandmother's younger brother who was a construction worker by craft.

And a very lovely, big house it was with its walls painted a bright colored red and white on the window-sills.

It even had a bathing-room down in the basement. And of course a nice electric sauna and another bedroom on the opposite side to the washroom.

The basement itself was somewhat underground as you could see the grass-line hovering at window-level when you peeked outside.

...

I breathed in the scents of nature around me and day-dreamed about eating the mushrooms I'd already found, for lunch, and the rest I would shove in my freezer for later use.

But I was also enjoying the familiar scenery, as it had been sold a long time ago but it didn't stop me from coming back to this area. The woods were still there, and so were the berries and mushrooms when it was their season to grow.

The area I was scavenging was a place someone had conveniently named ''Nurkkakivi''( Corner-rock) as it was the only massive stone landmark in the area.

The rock in question being a very large, moss covered boulder with also other vegetation growing from it.

It was so big that it might have very well been a piece of an eroded mountain that had been transported to this area of the woods long, long ago by the floods created by the melting and flooding during the end of the Ice Age.

My basket was about half full with delicious (in my opinion, as I rather liked cooked mushrooms and mushroom pie) chanterelles and I'd deemed myself totally fed up with the small moose-flies flying around me and crawling inside my clothes and in my shoulder length, blond hair that I'd twisted into a messy braid.

The flies were nasty little buggers which would not leave me alone! As nasty as the blood drinking horse-flies and as irritating as the mosquitoes.

I was about to head back towards the ''main road'' and call a taxi over to take me back home to 'Lappeenranta town' where I had my apartment, as buses seldom came to these areas during the day. It was annoying, really, as taxis weren't exactly the cheapest form of transportation.

It was then that I spotted something that caught my interest.

I gently dropped my basket of mushrooms on the ground and stooped to pick up the object that turned out to be a quite large, old style metal key that sure wasn't something made in the twenty-first century.

The thing was from my middle finger and down to my wrist in length and the width of four baby sized fingers (on the key part).

I turned the key around between my fingers that were in snug leather gloves, before shrugging my shoulders.

I didn't know who it had belonged to or how it had gotten there. And it really wasn't that important to me. All the same, I decided to stash the key in the pocket of my thick sailor blue Sports- jacket and make a necklace out of the object before turning to grab my basket of mushrooms.

It was then that I managed to spot another nice patch of the wonderful tasting chanterelles on the mossy ground near my basket. In a hole next to a wood-stump.

A rather large patch at that. My decision to leave had just been delayed.

Smiling at the luck of such a find, I immediately started picking them up and cleaning the dirt off them with a mushroom- cleaning brush that had a pocket- knife attached to it. I then used the knife to chop the very end of the stumps.

I ended up being so enthralled with picking the morsels of fungus that I failed to realize that the woodland scenery around me was beginning to shift from familiar to something entirely unfamiliar.

I hummed quietly as I finished cleaning the last mushroom, before dropping the morsel into my basket.

When I'd finished cleaning off the knife and brush I stood up and turned to give one last glance around me for anymore edible fungus when I suddenly realized that something was terribly, utterly wrong with my surroundings.

'' MITÄ... HEMMETTIÄ TÄMÄ OIKEIN ON  **(WHAT... IN THE HELL IS THIS)?'** ' I cried out loud in bewilderment as I swiveled my head around, trying to spot the familiar landmark that was ''Nurkkakivi'', but everything around me was wrong.

Wrong and unfamiliar!

The massive boulder that had stood tall on my right as a marker to where I was, had disappeared entirely; moss, plants and all.

Now there was an obvious man-made dirt road to my right that lead in two directions leading someplace I hadn't the faintest of idea.

I felt my legs collapse underneath me and I fell to the moss covered ground with a stunned expression frozen on my face. My throat felt extremely tight and my lips quivered as I breathed out harshly and continued to look around me, trying desperately to understand how I'd managed to find myself in a situation where I had no idea where my familiar surroundings, the ones I'd known from way in the past during my childhood, had disappeared.

Something like this just didn't happen to people!

It just wasn't POSSIBLE! IT WAS TOO SURREAL!

Swallowing hard, I buried my face in my gloved hands, chanting:'' Miksi, miksi, miksi? **( Why, why, why** )?'' in my head as I tried my best to not panic in my obviously very distressing situation.

Or burst into sobs of frustration.

I stayed thus for a long moment until I'd managed to snap myself back into a more aware state of mind.

It was no longer a question of how I got here; it was now a question as to what I would have to do next that would turn the tables in my favor. I couldn't just stay in this one place forever. I needed to find a settlement and then figure out what the hell I should go for from there.

Cursing at the fact that my day had started off so great before turning foul, I stumbled to my feet and lifted the basket of mushrooms off the ground whilst shoving my mushroom-brush and closed pocket-knife inside my jacket-pocket.

I glowered witheringly at the dirt- road for a long moment, trying to determine which way I should take, but it wasn't easy to make a decision. Which ever way I were to choose, it would still lead me somewhere unknown and I had no idea if the other way just lead me further away from civilization.

If only there had been people crossing my path at this time.

'' HAH!'' I cried out loud in frustration.'' Koita nyt tehdä oikea päätös tässä tilanteessa  **(Ho, you try making a right decision in this situation)**!''

Angrily, I just began walking briskly in one direction with my army-green rain-boots crunching loudly on the tiny pebbles of the dirt-road. My mushroom-basket was waving around in my hand in tandem with my brisk pace.

I needed to find a water source somewhere, too, if I didn't find myself in town before dark but at least I had the mushrooms to prepare for food source when I became hungry. That is, if I managed to light a fire somehow without any matches.

''Hienoa! Todella vittumaisen hienoa! ( **Great! Just 'damn' great!** )'' I snarled out in my rage.

I would have to eat the mushrooms raw after finding a water source to wash them off if it came to it, but at least I knew these mushrooms weren't poisonous.

All the same this situation was really crating on my nerves, and it showed as I continued muttering curses in my mother-tongue.

Using words like: ''Hemmetti! Vittu! Helvetti! Perkele!

The curse words, that in my opinion, added more punch to how I felt about being in a situation where I had no idea whether I'd find somewhere to stay the night.

I had no travel equipment except for the small red Fjallraven- packpack, the clothes I was wearing, my thick wool- hat with flaps on the sides and a thick yellow scarf (which were stuffed in my backpack), a ''puukko'' (that was one of my most prized possessions), water-bottle, my phone, the mushroom-brush attached to the pocket knife.

And the basket of mushrooms.

I kicked a rather large pebble out of my way and watched it soar somewhere in the underbrush surrounding the road, then abruptly kicked harshly at another that skittered away from the road and disappeared very much like the first one.

Yep, I was definitely in a very foul mood!

And I was sure my mood would only get worse as hours pass if I didn't find any form of civilization before nightfall.

...

**End Of**   **Chapter 1 Where the hell Am I?**

**...**

**Author Notes: Yes, I didn't tell the adventurer's name yet. I'm saving it for later. I'll just try and be more detailed in other parts of the story to make things interesting.**

**Now, the place called 'Kuominanmäki' is an actual small town( or rather a village) in Finland.** **In fact Nurkkakivi (Corner-rock) is a place where my sisters, grandma and I often went mushroom picking for those delicious funnel-chanterelles.**

**The red painted house I mentioned does exist and was built by my own grandfather's hands.**

 

 

 


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Why caution is strictly necessary!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own the fine work of J.R.R Tolkien. I only own the adventurer I myself created.

...

'' Hobbiton? The Shire?''

I blinked open mouthed at the sign I'd managed to find beside the path just moments ago.

'' K-kuinka... (h-how)?!'' I whispered out in numbed disbelief, noticing how weakened my knees felt all of a sudden.

Questions sparked up in my head like fireworks. Questions as to wether my eyes were seeing things! If this was all a big fat joke some block-head had cooked up just for fun, then I had no idea wether my sanity would deem it forgiveable.

Or could it possibly be all real?

Staring at the sign for a moment, I took in the old wood and the black paint smeared across it to form the name of '' HOBBITON'' in large curved letters and an arrow at the end to point the way for travellers. The paint was already beginning to chip off with old age and the wood itself was starting to look very worn.

But the wooden pole seemed sturdy enough that it wouldn't fall over from a gust of wind.

I sighed wearily and leaned against the wooden pole as exhaustion ran through me.

I had walked, and walked (between bathroom breaks, that is) and walked for hours, it seemed. And then walked some more until finding myself looking at this post that pointed towards civilisation, but instead of comfort it brought me unexpected worry and fear.

If this wasn't some boneheads idea of a joke, then things could get very, very bad for my health.

And it really was starting to look very, very real to me as I thought back to the disappearance of ''Corner Rock''.

Hobbiton meant the Shire. The Shire meant Hobbits and the Hobbit Hole of ''Bag End''. ''Bag End'' equeled for Bilbo- or Frodo Baggins (or both). Those two Hobbits spelled out danger, adventure and utter mayhem with a salty mix of potential death in the making.

Dear god, the book given to me as a Christmas present from my father; the one I'd so enjoyed reading after seeing the first movie (followed by ''The Hobbit'', Silmarillion and the Unfinished Tales), now suddenly sounded so scary and foreboding.

The damn Ring of Power, Moria, Balrog, captivity and very possible torture by orcs. The goblins, the thrice cursed Uruk-Hai of Saruman's making and even more deadly battles and despair.

Or it meant going on the journey to reclaim the 'Lost Home' of the Dwarrows of the Blue Mountains. This, of course, equaled for barbequed dwarrows, wargs, Goblin-town, Azog the Defiler, Greenwood the Great and the damn prissy Elven King Thranduil and then to top everything off there loomed the imminent danger of getting incinerated by Dragon Smaug's deadly fire-breathing!

To think that I once had no idea what the 'The Lord of the Rings' movie had been about (I had seen the first movie before reading the book) and my childish thoughts (I'd still been a child when the movie had come out) before seeing the film inside a theater in Brussels had been a story that involved a man who had lots of ''Rings'' in his keeping. Hence the 'Lord of The Rings' theory.

I groaned lowly and slid to the ground and buried my face in my hair, my gloved hands gripping my blond locks tightly in my distress.

'' Miksi Helvetissä  _(Why in hell)?_ '' I moaned out, ceasing the grip on my hair; instead flinging my hands in the air and waving them around in agitation before calming down somewhat.

Or, I started thinking more rationally, the time zone may have been of a peaceful era. After Bilbo's adventure to Erebor and the historical tale of finding the 'Ring of Power', or just after the 130th Birthday of Bilbo Baggins and 33th birthday of Frodo Baggins. Which both summed up to no wizard. Then she would have to think about actually venturing out in the Great Beyond( Mysterious Beyond!) and find Rivendell. To seek help from Lord Elrond who's wisdom was renowned was in the books.

But how in hell could anyone offer me help in getting back home, except for perhaps the Valar themselves who were likely culprits in bringing me to this world?

Wait, did I actually mention 'Great Beyond'? And 'Mysterious Beyond'!? From the 'Land Before Time' movies?

Ei saatana!

If anyone had seen me now they would have thought I had lost my sanity completely, for succumbing to hysterical laughter whilst bent over against the post was a sure sign of someone loosing it.

It really shouldn't have been so funny, but I was so tired, scared and confused.

Then finally, the tears came, and I collapsed on the ground next to the pole.

I was just so tired, and my legs felt tender and blistery. I cried quietly for a moment longer, my forehead touching the wood before getting a hold of myself. Coughing slightly, I clawed at the grass and tried to think of some sort of plan.

Maybe the only plan was to head towards the Shire and find ''Bag End''; and talk to Master Bilbo Baggins (or Frodo Baggins). Ask politely how he'd been doing (in order to try and determine what time zone I've landed in) and perhaps plead to stay over for a while with a promise to help with the housework. And offer him my mushrooms as a gift-offering.

As ludicrous as it sounded I was beginning to believe in the imminent realization that I was somehow in Middle- Earth. Because how could a great big mossy, vegetated boulder just suddenly and mysteriously disappear when it had been looming in the background just a few meters away from my turned back the last time I'd set my eyes upon it?

The whole realization that the scenery had just sneakily changed around me from familiar to not at all familiar was just too real to ignore.

Sighing, I ran a hand across my face before leaning against the post.

My eyes felt like they wanted to force themselves closed and as tired as I was feeling, I had no want to fight the sensation. Soon I was in a very deep sleep that I failed to wake up from for several hours, until some bumbling oaf walked straight into me out of the blue.

I had missed any footsteps that had been coming towards me.

...

'' OOOFFF!'' I gasped out sharply as the heavy someone knocked the wind straight out of my lungs as he, or she, fell on top of me and jolted me out of my nice long nap and causing me discomfort.

'' Oww!'' the person himself (I was now sure it was a 'he' from the sound of the voice) groaned out weakly.'' I am terribly...sorry about this!''

'' That's... alright!'' I puffed out, squirming under the person's weight and cursing inwardly at the feeling of not being able to breath normally.

I forced open my still sleep blurred eyes.

I could still feel the great weight of the person draped over my stomach but I could also feel him squirming to lift himself off me without hurting me further. But his efforts seemed to have exhausted him as he almost immediately collapsed on the ground beside me, his head half resting on my left knee that was covered with my laced 'Tretorn rainboot'.

I groaned quietly and sat up with some effort myself and clutched my stomach which had caught the brunt of the impact for a moment before looking more closely at the person that had startled me almost to the high heavens and who was still resting his head on my knee; seemingly so weak that he was unable to get up on his feet and be on his way.

Was he drunk? Or was he ill? I sincerely hoped it was the latter.

But when I finally took in who the person actually was I found myself frozen for a long moment in sheer shock and surprise.

Ori, son of Fitoria!

It had to be!

His almost bowl-cut hairstyle, knitted clothing under a plum colored jacket, face and nose were a dead give-away; although his beard was a little thicker and shorter than in the two Hobbit-movies I'd seen recently. His nose was a little smaller and his eyes looked to be less closer together.

Thank god I didn't blabber his name out loud or start screaming like a Tolkien-fangirl (not that I ever was that kind, anyway), but my god was it surprising to see a first of the inhabitants of Middle-earth.

And a dwarrow at that!

But... what was wrong with him? Why was he so out of energy? And where were his older brothers?

''Hey,'' I gently shook him on the shoulder ( a low groan escaped his lips),'' are you alright?''

Oops.

I immediately cringed at my chosen question as it flew out of my mouth. Of course the poor bloke wasn't alright from the looks of him, but in my shock at this unexpected situation I had been unable to think of a better question to ask.

_'' Senkin tonttu!_ **(stupid oaf!** '')'' I inwardly duped myself before asking:'' What has happened to you? Are you injured?''

The poor dwarrow mumbled something unintelligible and raised himself a bit to get in a more comfortable position on the ground, making a small blush appear on my cheeks as I reminded myself that he was practically still resting his head against my knee. Something which he still seemed to be unaware of; or maybe he was but needed the comforting feel of someone touching him.

'' There were orcs.'' Ori spoke up as he turned his hazel- eyes to me (even his voice was weak).'' The wretched creatures caught my brothers and me unawares. My brothers told me to run away from the battle and find safe shelter somewhere.''

I immediately stiffened at the word 'orcs'. Orcs were never, ever a good sign in Middle-Earth.

Ori started coughing suddenly with a pained look in his eyes, and I reached in my backpack to take out my water- bottle from the pocket my sister had made on the side of the red bag. I unscrewed the lid and handed it over to Ori who took it from my hands gratefully.

'' I don't know.. what happened to them after I ran. I lost sight of them in all the ''hubbub''. I looked for them... but found no sight of either of them.'' Ori continued once he'd finished drinking the last of the water. His voice now hinted that he was struggling not to cry at his brothers unknown situation.

And I was suddenly struck with the want to cry myself.

This wasn't in the movies or the book J.R.R Tolkien had written long ago! This was something entirely 'out' of the Tolkien-canon. Something that reminded me awfully of my own uncertain future.

I swallowed hard and slowly and uncertainly reached out with my hand and brushed it against Ori's forehead and cheek. I didn't touch his hair, though, as I didn't know if the fanfiction stories were right about hair having a great importance to dwarrows; and that touching someone's hair was only reserved for 'close family' and lovers.

I felt him stiffen momentarily at my touch and I was about to drop my hand, but then a much larger hand grasped my own with an almost bruising strength. But it felt unthreatening.

I gave a sad smile when the young dwarrow nuzzled my much smaller hand; no doubt taking comfort from a person's touch after the ordeal he'd been through with the wretched orcs having ambushed Ori's family's camp.

'' I- I hope they are alright.'' Ori whispered in a choked voice laced with slight despair.

'' I... I hope so, too,'' I mumbled out quietly, my voice shaking ever so slightly,'' for your sake and their's. No one deserves to loose a loved one.''

Yep, there's my pain in the open, as well.

My family was practically lost to me now and I hadn't seen them often enough as it is.

My home was in Finland, but both my sisters had jobs in England, and my father and stepmother lived in Brussels due to my fathers job. 'Skype' with the camera had been one of the very welcome technologies that allowed as to have more time to talk to each other.

But now even that small bit of family bonding was taken away from me!

So putting myself in Ori's shoes was a reflex born from mutual sadness and despair. Sympathising with the dwarrow's own fears for the fate of Dori and Nori was very easy at the moment with my loss being so recent.

Then I suddenly felt the fabric of my dark green construction work pants (I liked comfortable clothes whenever going in a forest) dampening from... tears?

Ori was silently crying against my knee, his other hand gripping the thick fabric of my pants. His despair almost had me blubbering right alongside him.

_'' Hemmetti (_ **damn** _)!_ '' I thought inwardly, feeling tears sliding down my own cheeks.'' _Hemmetti!_ ''

Drawing out a long shaky sigh I glanced upwards, noting that the sun was still firmly up in the sky but that I had no idea how long it was going to be staying up there.

I really needed to get up and walk myself to the Shire, but would Ori be strong enough to walk there with me. He had been so weak, before, and despite getting a bit of rest after literally stumbling upon me, I wasn't sure if he was back to any sort of energy to start walking.

We weren't exactly aquinted with each other, yet, and we were not friends. But asking him if he needed help getting to the Shire seemed the right idea.

So I backed up some mental courage and said tentatively: ''Listen, I don't know much about you and why you are here , but I've got someone to meet out in the Shire. I really need to be... getting on my way soon, so if you need help getting to wherever you were heading towards, I hope it is the same destination as mine.''

Of course, everything I'd just said had been a serious lie because the moment I'd recognised the young dwarrow I'd had a very clear stock of what he was doing in the Hobbiton area.

My words had the success of drawing the young dwarf out of his misery, but just not in the way I'd hoped.

He lifted his head up to look at me his eyes held a flash of suspicion which immediately had me on edge.

'' You are no hobbit.'' he stated, looking at me in a way that suggested he was really seeing what I was; for the first time since he had stumbled on me.

'' No,'' I answered,'' I am a human, as a matter of fact.''

'' Human?'' Ori asked me with an edge to his voice.

'' 'Daughter of Men'.'' I answered warily, squashing the urge to roll my eyes up at the sky over the fact that I'd needed to use 'Tolkien-canon' to explain myself to the young dwarf.

Ori suddenly pushed himself away from me with speed that I hadn't expected and grasped tightly at my jacket sleeve even as he pulled out a very sharp looking dagger out of his coat sleeve.

His action had me gasping sharply in surprise.

''And what business does a Daughter of Men have in the Shire?'' Ori asked me with a now dangerous edge to his voice that had me fearing for my own safety.'' Your kind doesn't wander into these parts often, and with what happened to my brothers and me, I'm starting to wonder wether you are a spy and that your allegiance with orcs have put my family in danger.''

My eyes narrowed in fury at such accusation.

'' Tell me, why in all that is holy would I be in liege with ORCS?! I came here to seek the wisdom of Gandalf the Grey!'' I answered with a hardened voice forged from shock, outrage and fear flooding through me.

'' And how would you have known that Gandalf the Grey would be in these parts of Middle-Earth?'' Ori asked me quickly as he pressed the sharp point of the dagger against my throat.

I uttered a small choking gasp when I felt the pointed tip pierce slightly through the soft skin and draw blood.

'' Answer me, human!''

I gasped again as the blade-tip went in deeper and I started to feel the warm liquid drip down my neck.

The blood sliding down my skin caused shivers to run down my spine.

This... this was absolutely the last straw!

I had never been attacked in all my life, and to have it happen so close to the Shire which until now I'd believed to have been the safest place in all of Middle-Earth, was like torture.

'' EI HELVETISSÄ( **NO WAY IN HELL**!)'' I cursed out loud (and loudly at that) which no doubt stunned the young dwarf momentarily.

And that's all I needed to fling my right hand forward to grasp the thick wrist holding the dagger (the other going for the dwarrows left wrist) and kicked out with both my booted feet. I was not an expert fighter but fear leads to adreline, and adreline does help people accomplish extraordinary things which they might not have been able to do otherwise.

'' AH!'' Ori yelped out as my kick landed on his chest and made him topple over backwards from my viginity.

In his weakened state such reaction to the kick was inevitable. Especially when I'd used all the strength I'd been able to muster in that moment of adreline-rush.

But I wasn't about to stay there to find out how quickly he would be on his feet again. The animosity had really scared me, and I wondered how much more of that would be in my near future if I met any of the others of Thorin Oakenshield's ''merry'' company of dwarrows.

To think that the dwarrow I had always thought to be a very gentle, polite soul in the movies I'd seen would turn out to be so dangerous. He must really have picked something from his brothers, especially Nori whom was a thief (supposedly), and such thoughts weren't at all comforting to think about.

I was on my feet with fists clenched near my sides as I stayed in a semi-crouched position and ready to bolt if Ori decided he would try and attack me again.

'' To answer your question, master dwarf,'' I hissed out, knowing I would be lying through my teeth (but I wasn't about to reveal my true origin to this person after what he had almost done to me moments ago),'' Gandalf the Grey told me himself that he would be in the Shire.''

I glowered at Ori who had by now raised himself in a crouched position on the ground and was eyeing me with an unreadable expression on his young face.

I don't know how long we stood there looking at each other in stone cold silence, but then Ori said unexpectedly:'' My brothers and I were on our way to the Shire, as well, to meet up with Gandalf the Grey. In a place called 'Bag End' owned by a Hobbit called Bilbo Baggins. You will find him there, lady...?''

'' Maija Ranta-Aho!'' I answered shortly, but trying not to sound too rude despite the harrowing experience moments ago.

'' Lady M-aija.'' Ori said, stumbling over the unfamiliar name, making it sound more like'' Maya''.

That was inevitable. He didn't even try to say my surname, which made me smirk inwardly. Finnish first names and surnames weren't the easiest to speak correctly. Mispronounciation was something that always happened when people from other countries spoke my name.

''Dori, Nori and I were, indeed, heading towards the same destination, Lady M-aija.'' Ori continued.'' Therefore, I must ask for a favor.''

He looked very uncomfortable. '' Would it be possible for us to travel together until we reach Mr Baggins's house?''

I literally almost died at this question, my thoughts immediately screaming:'' EI HELVETISSÄ ( **NO WAY IN HELL** '') for the second time in a short time, but my heart (curse it) still withheld some sympathy for the young dwarrow that had not that long ago cried into my knee over his ''lost'' brothers.

What was I to do, anyway?

Ori must have seen the indecision on my face because he said hesitantly:'' I can walk, now after resting for the short time we've been here together, but my ankle was badly twisted and still hurts.''

He showed me his left ankle that was wrapped tightly in a brace (which he must have done himself'). '' And I might acquire help later if the Shire is still far and I am unable to keep up my pace.''

I drew in a breath sharply, looking away for a moment and pacing forward down the road before spinning around on my heels to speak to the dwarf whom was looking at me with a look between guilt, worry, and plead that was so different from how he'd acted not that long ago.

But he must have eaten my lie (which was something I had not wanted to ever do), about Gandalf telling me to meet him in Bag End.

Had he begun to change his mind about me?

Even if he hadn't I would still need to help Ori get to his destination because Dori and Nori (heaven help me if they were to find out that I'd considered leaving their little brother on his own when with an injured ankle) were likely to not take kindly to me if I left him here alone. Not if they were as protective of him in real life as they'd been in peoples 'fanfictions' (and even in the Hobbit movies).

_Perkele!_ _When would my life ever return back to normal, anyway?!_

'' Fine, Mr...?''

'' Ori,'' the dwarrow answered immediately,'' daughter of Fitoria.''

_DAUGHTER?_

_DAUGHTER OF FITORIA?_

'' Ori, daughter of Fitoria,'' I spoke without preamble, trying my hardest not to show my absolute shock and mortification at the realization that Ori was in actualty a 'dwarrowdam','' I will allow you to travel in my company.''

_'' Saatana!''_ I moan inwardly as an afterthought for again using such a form of speech, when normally I didn't use such over politeness. But I never tried to be rude to people unless the person was an abomination.

'' But I must ask you to keep a slight distance between us...''

_What was I getting myself into, anyway? And again with that form of speech!_

'' until such a time when my assistance is absolutely necessary.''

_Great way to find new friends, isn't it? Senkin tonttu (you oaf)!_ _And was I trying to fit in with the people of Middle-Earth and not stand out, or what?! Is this why my speech automatically turned to such politeness?_

As I finished speaking I immediately noticed Ori's expression fall slightly at my words as she struggled to her feet (which no doubt were a far distance from the gentle words that I'd spoken before she held a knife to my throat. But did she honestly think I would so easily forget the fear that her actions had caused?!), before she managed to school her expression back to neutral.

Then she surprised me by grabbing the basket of mushrooms and my water-bottle that I'd left on the ground in my panic to get away quickly and took a hesitant step forward towards me.

Ori flinched slightly (no doubt the pain in her ankle) but held in any noise of pain and walked further down the path towards me.

'' Here, these belong to you, lady Ma-ij-a.'' she said quietly with a hesitant smile on her face as she held out the full basket of chanterelles, and my water-bottle towards me.

I nodded, returning her smile with a hesitant half-smile of my own before taking the items from her hands.

I then moved away so that I was standing about a man's length from her, and beckoned her to follow me with a sharp movement of my head.

Again I wondered what was in store for me in the future as the two of us held a mutual pace as we walked, me staying in tandem with her slower pace whilst keeping the distance between our persons when it came to actual touching.

...

**END of Chapter 2** **Why Caution is Strictly Necessary!**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author Note: Constructive Reviews are very welcome.


	3. Learning to Trust

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What would you do if you are walking towards the Shire with a Dwarrow that had just attacked you because he'd found you suspicious, and a threat?

_The Hobbit, or There and Back Again_

 

  _And The Very Unexpected_

 

_Journey of a Finn_

**...**

**Chapter 3 Learning to Trust a Stranger**

**Summary: Where an object is found and a sentence such as: '' VOI PERKELE!'' is an appropriate statement to utter in a situation where you've ended up in the middle of nowhere in an unfamiliar land.**

****Disclaimer:** ** ****I do not own the fine work of** ** ****J.R.R Tolkien.** ** ****I only own the adventurer I myself created.** **

**… **...****

...

Much had ended up happening on the walk to the Shire, but thankfully it had nothing to do with orc-packs ambushing us on the road. That would have been the one breaking point for my brain on top of everything else that I'd learned to cope with from that moment I'd found myself out of familiar territory.

But one significant change that had happened was the gradual companionship that sprouted between Ori daughter of Fitoria and I out of sheer necessity to try to get along.

And be of help to each other.

It had soon turned out that the Shire actually was a long way down the road from where we'd begun my hopefully last leg of the journey, and that Ori's injured ankle couldn't take all that weight for long.

So I had to step in and help her move along, which I'd did with some hesitation and suspicion. I was sure she had picked up on my uneasiness towards her, as she did not speak up to whittle a conversation out of me, or to make any sudden moves that could've made me bolt. She was treating me as if I were a frightened, skittish animal that would bolt at any sign of danger.

And that's exactly how she'd made me feel with her earlier actions.

Middle-Earth was a mystery to me (no matter how well I knew the books) and it had so many potentials to become hazardous to my life.

Must have been her underlying gentle nature, I assumed. I was pretty sure that hearing of Gandalf the Grey having told me that he would be in the Shire had made any lingering suspicions to dwindle.

But while I wasn't easy to get riled up due to my calm nature, I wasn't above getting angry at people. And when I did get angry, the anger wouldn't so easily be smothered.

Throw the suspicion into the mix and you've got yourself a very angry and suspicious finn.

'' How long do you think we must walk to get to the Shire, lady Maija?''

I was snapped out of my own thoughts at Ori's hesitant question, and I turned to glance at the dwarrowdam clinging to my shoulder and wincing as she walked alongside me.

She looked so weary and pained that it kindled a spark of sadness within me that had been blocked until now.

'' I honestly have no idea, lady Ori.'' I answered truthfully, tiredness creeping to my voice as well. I had been walking since early morning and now the early rise was taking its toll on me.

I stopped all of a sudden which had Ori stumbling slightly with a pained gasp before she managed to catch her balance. I could feel Ori shaking slightly next to me, and it caused another stronger pang of sympathy to rise within me.

'' How is your ankle?'' I asked her quietly, glancing at her from the corner of my eye.

'' It hurts...'' Ori muttered a she leaned more heavily on my shoulder and balanced on one foot (obviously trying to take weight off the injured ankle),'' quite badly. There is a stream not far from here. Can we stop and take a breather?''

And now there was bubbling guilt rising in me as well. Curse my soft heart sometimes, but Ori was a living, breathing person in obvious pain and I wasn't about to transform into a bully. No matter what she'd done to me earlier.

Sighing quietly, I put a hand on Ori's clutching hand and slowly eased it off me, making her gasp in surprise and question.

Before she could ask what I was doing I moved in front of her silently and crouched.

'' Climb on.'' I said shortly, glancing behind me to see the shock and indecision on the dwarrowdam's face at my words.

She hesitated a long moment, and I breathed out a somewhat annoyed sigh. '' Just climb on, please. I've done '' piggy-backs'' before with my sisters who are taller than me by four inches.''

'' Uhhh... alright.'' Ori mumbled as she climbed on slowly, obviously expecting me to be thrown from balance by her weight.

And I did stumble a little as I stood up, I was forced to admit to my utter mortification, but I immediately shot my other leg forward to prevent myself from toppling on my face.

Ori immediately uttered a small startled squeal near my left ear, flinging her arms around my neck tightly to prevent herself from being thrown off and ending up facedown on the hard ground.

I cringed at the choking hold around my neck and winced at the squeal so near my ears.

'' JumaLAUTA!'' I gasped out breathlessly as I finally was able to right myself to my full height and grasped the undersides of her knees to balance her off. '' Ori, I'm terribly sorry... but would you loosen your grip before you choke me to death, please?!''

'' I'm sorry!'' Ori squeaked out at me and promptly loosened her hold.

'' Ugh...'' I gasped out, staying motionless for a few moments. I breathed in and out until my heart-rate had returned back to normal and I was able to adjust to the added weight on my back.

Ori wasn't a twig on my back, for sure, but I wasn't exactly one either, though I wasn't one of those people who constantly worked out in a gym to gain obvious muscle-mass.

But I had some hidden muscle that came with my physical needing job. I also had somewhat wide shoulders and ribcage. My hips were also wide and my breasts on the normal size 75B which added to the image that my ribcage was wide. All this added to my weight which stood a little more than 132.2 pounds. Which was completely normal weight for a human woman my height.

Ori, though, must have been quite a bit more than my 132,2 pounds despite her height being under five feet. But she was a dwarrowdam which made it normal for her, I suppose.

I heard Ori give a small exclamation of relief as I stood up straight and took hold of the undersides of her knees to steady her. I felt her grab my shoulders tighter, which made me give an amused smirk at myself. I could understand her thinking. I was a rather small human when it came to height issues and compared with any male dwarrow I might have looked more like a twig than naught.

'' So,'' I asked as a voluntary, amused tint slipped into my voice as I started walking down the path again at a slower pace. I knew carrying a dwarrowdam would become difficult if the distance to the Shire was still a long distance from here,'' where is this stream you mentioned, Ori? And how on earth did you know about it?''

'' That way, lady Maija.'' Ori answered, pointing her finger in the direction, her voice sounding amused now, too.'' I asked the rocks for directions.''

'' OH!'' I uttered, sounding slightly surprised. So that information, too, was very true from the fanfictions people had written. Dwarves did have a second sense when it came to rocks,'' and can the rocks tell you wether that water of that stream is safe for us to drink?''

'' It is safe for us to drink from,'' Ori answered with a small laugh,'' or otherwise I wouldn't have brought up such information with you.''

I blushed at that; and deeply.'' Should have known not to question your information.'' I muttered quietly, smirking at myself for having even asked such a question.

Ori laughed at my words, sounding much brighter than before and less weary. She had also lost her initial shock from me having asked her to climb on my back and was now leaning forward, her arms leaning over the sides of my shoulders and locked together in front of me where I could see them if I looked down. Her front pressed into my upper back and red backpack.

I smiled as I realised that I felt more eased by this new position. To be able to see where both her hands were positioned gave me a safer feeling than it had some time ago when she had been just leaning against my shoulder. I would know if she were to try and grasp a weapon (which I doubted she would try, really).

Maybe she'd moved in this position on purpose because she wanted me to know she wasn't trying to be a danger to me any longer. Or maybe it just gave her a more comfortable position.

Either way, maybe I should think about taking an iniative and flow with it, seeing if this would turn into a friendship where both of us could trust each other without question.

I had no want to stay alone in this world for what ever time I'd be stuck in it, anyway.

….

'' OH!'' I groaned out as I slowly eased the young dwarrowdam on the ground close to the stream we had found.'' Heavens, Ori, what have you been eating lately?''

'' Probably whatever dwarrowdams usually eat, Maija.'' Ori immediately retorted with laughter in her voice at my playful probe.

At some point on the road I'd become comfortable enough to ask the daughter of Fitoria to stop calling me'' lady'' and just stick with '' Maija''. She had been hesitant at first to drop the'' lady'' from my name but I'd assured her that where I came from it was it was completely acceptable to call someone by just their first name. Even your elders.

'' Eat less, please, Ori.'' I groaned playfully as I sank down on the soft green moss surrounding the lazily flowing stream.'' I hate to think how much a dwarrow could weigh.''

In turn, Ori had told me to drop the lady from her name, too. I'd done so, after making sure it didn't violate any rules of her kin( it didn't, thankfully, if the person in question was comfortable in having someone use just the first name).

'' A lot more than a dwarrowdam for sure, I'm sorry.'' Ori retorted, laughing at the look of pained resignation on my face as I breathed in and out for several minutes.

'' Then please, remind me to never ever try and carry one.'' I gasped out, rolling my eyes to the heavens before taking out my water bottle from the red packback I'd put on the ground in front of me. '' Wait here, Ori, and I'll go and grab us a drink from the stream.''

Ori nodded without saying anything and layed back on the soft green moss, closing her eyes against the glare of the sun. She looked so exhausted.

I realized she must not have slept for quite some time with all the worrying for her elder brothers.

I smiled sadly back at her dozing form for a moment before tip-toeing over to the stream, slipping a few times on the sludgy ground beside the bank of the moving water.

Before submerging the water bottle in the stream, I went to my knees and dunked my whole head in the flowing water. I sighed inwardly at how nice and cool to the skin it felt; and I stayed like that for some time before coming up for air.

My face and hair were now sopping wet, but heavens I had no care for such thoughts at the moment. I gave a sigh of comfort at the now cool feeling on my skin. It kinda felt like the water was caressing me as I touched it.

I pulled my head out once I started running out of air and dunked the water bottle in the stream.

I drank the whole thing a moment later, smiling inwardly at how clean and pure the water tasted. I took a moment to smell the air before standing up, and sensed how pure and untarnished it felt as I breathed in and out. I then filled the water-bottle up to the brim once more before standing up and walking back towards where Ori was still splayed out on the ground, looking to still be deeply asleep.

Seeing this, I started stomping on the ground hard as I walked closer, even kicking aside a large rock. I had no want for her to be caught unawares by me sneaking up on her like some blood-thirsty orc; and trigger another attack on me if I happened to frighten her out her deep sleep.

That did the trick.

Ori groaned as she sat up slowly, rubbing a hand across her face, and looked at me in amusement as I handed her the water bottle without the lid.'' What in Mahal's name were you doing just now?''

'' Ehhmm...'' I coughed out with a sheepish smirk,'' no want to frighten you and make you think I'm an ''orc ''sneaking up on you. I've learned that its common sense when you go out in the woods to find berries or mushrooms and you don't want any predators coming near you. You make a lot of noise when you walk and they won't bother you.''

'' Just not here in Middle-earth!'' I thought inwardly.'' Well, near the Shire they might just do that, maybe, but out there in the beyond you need to learn to be stealthy. Need to remember that for the future, eh?!''

'' Well I'm glad you aren't a filthy orc,'' Ori answered with a smirk of her own,'' though you are ugly enough to be like one.''

She raised her eyebrows at the sight of my sopping wet hair which I was wringing between my hands to get the excess water out.

'' Ho, hoo!'' I said sarcastically as I brushed tendrils of hair out of my eyes and trying not to laugh.'' I seriously hope you are joking, Ori. What part of me makes me an orc, anyway?''

Ori just laughed quietly at my reaction before putting the filled water-bottle to her lips and taking a long drink from it.

'' Your manners aren't exactly Dori approved, you know?!'' she quipped as she lowered the water-bottle from her lips.'' You know, with all the cursing you do?!''

And I found myself laughing at the quip with tears stinging at the corners of my eyes. I'd felt so alone since coming here. Faced suspicion and bad-will, but perhaps I was finding a friend I could speak to about my fears and loneliness.

It was slow going, but I was learning.

…...

'' Honestly, you would think that two weary travellers weren't so interesting.'' I muttered to Ori as I trudged towards the hill that was Bag End.

To disguise my knowledge of Middle-earth and its inhabitants I had decided to ask for directions to Mr Baggins's house. And that's how I was now having to contend with all the stares thrown at me by the gentle folk of the Shire.

'' Then again, we aren't exactly something you'd call local folk, now are we? " A dwarrow and a member of the Dwarrow travelling together to meet Mr Bilbo Baggins.'' I groused out in irritation at the slightly curious but wary looks being given in our general direction.'' Makes for a great bedtime story for the young ones now doesn't it?! For the next DAMN CENTURY!''

I had been very awed of the gentle little-folk. Who wouldn't be, if you had read the Lord of the Rings Trilogy, for a while after stepping foot into the bustling heart of the Shire. They looked very much like in the movies, but a pinch chubbier, and their curly hair thicker and shinier. Their feet were also ever so slightly larger than what had been shown in the movies and the thick, soft looking hair growing out of the feet were more noticeable.

And all the children! With their chubby cheeks and furry feet! Oh, how I wanted to strode over where they were playing and hug one of the adorable munchkins that probably were full of mischief, too.

But the looks shoved at us from the elders curbed that thought and made me careful as to how I should express myself around their children.

Ori snorted into my shoulder, shaking slightly with amusement.

'' Calm down a little, will ya?! The petrified look on the poor lad's face when you asked for directions to Mr Baggin's house was hilarious, but try not to get angry at the gentle folk for their slight rudeness and staring. ''

'' Per-KELE! I wasn't trying to be hilarious in any way, miss Ori.'' I ground out between clenched teeth.'' Heaven knows I'm exhausted and the hobbit's stuttering to my face just wasn't welcome.''

'' Still, I wish you didn't glare at the hobbits so, you'll just make them more nervous around you.'' Ori muttered in exasperation.

'' HAH!'' I exclaimed loudly, glancing back at the young dwarrow.

'' You should have heard me loose it on those few times I was travelling towards the Shire before you stumbled along. Screaming to the high heavens on how utterly frustrated I was over my sense of directions. The mood I'm in right now is nothing.'' I continued in a voice mean't only for Ori's ears.

Ori uttered a low groan of frustration at my answer and tugged firmly at my hair admonishingly.'' Please don't loose it here, Maija. I shudder to think how the Shire-folk would react if you do such a thing here.''

I just grunted at her actions and adjusted my grip on Ori's knees and put one foot in front of the other as I climbed over a fence and took a shortcut towards Bag End. I knew I was being terribly rude and that had everyone tip-toe around me.

I knew my foul mood was present because I was worrying about how I would be able to convince Master Baggins to invite Ori and I into his home, if his mind had already frazzled by Gandalf having asked him to come on the ''wild goose chase'' of an adventure. But did the others know that? No, they had no idea!

I forlornly glanced down at the swinging mushroom-basket which was clutched in my fist and cursed in my head that such a gift would surely not be enough to offer any payment for lodgings when you think about just how much Thorin Oakenshield's company was going to be eating tonight.

Perkele! I was going to need a DRINK tonight. Preferably something very strong. At least for tonight.

'' Keep in mind the reason their so nervous around us.'' Ori spoke up wisely.'' You are from the race of men and I'm a dwarrow; and we are travelling together in an area of their territory where such folk seldom venture. You can't really blame them for that, can you?! ''.

I sighed in utter defeat and stopped walking. Her words were true, and I was being unreasonable and moody. No wonder the Hobbits were wary of me when I'd probably looked like I was going to explode on them.

I stretched my muscles for a moment to allow any tension to flow away. My face relaxed as the pain in my shoulders eased away and I allowed a softer expression take over.

'' And what in Mahal's name does '' perkele'' mean exactly?'' Ori asked out of the blue, her voice curious.

Caught by surprise, I snorted at that question before breaking into loud laughter that had me leaning against a letter-box.

Many of the Hobbits still watching us looked surprised at my sudden change of mood, but took it on a stride and the talking between the elders didn't increase in volume. Many Hobbits stopped their daily labour and just watched us with confused expressions.

'' Its a ''curse word'' invented into the language used in our land. And heaven help me if I start saying that around your brother, Dori. You told me on our way here that he isn't overly fond of people cursing around you.'' I managed to explain between chuckles.

'' Hah! You should try to curb your tongue a little around him when you meet Dori, perhaps.'' Ori answered with a snigger as I pushed myself off the letter-box and continued to trod across the ankle deep grass.

We were just heading up the rather steep hill covered in grass that separated us from Bag End, when fate again decided to give me rocks instead of diamonds.

Or rather, a fall, for my rainboots just happened to slip on the somewhat damp grass of the hill that lead towards Bilbo Baggins's home and... well...voi Perkele!

''EIIIIIIIIIIIII( NOOOOOOOO)!''

'' OH, MAHAAAALLLLL!''

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author Note: Next chapter in Bag End. I was trying to make Maija not so easily trust Ori again after what happened in the last chapter. But they did have to learn to work together in order to reach Shire.


	4. First Meetings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> While in Bag End...

_The Hobbit, or There and Back Again_

_And The Very Unexpected_

_Journey of a Finn_

_..._

**Chapter 4** _First Meetings_

**Summary: Where an object is found and a sentence such as: '' VOI PERKELE!'' is an appropriate statement to utter in a situation where you've ended up in the middle of nowhere in an unfamiliar land.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own the fine work of J.R.R Tolkien. I only own the adventurer I myself created.**

…...

'' Auts, auts, auts (ow, ow, ow)! Ei HELVETTI!'' I moaned out painfully as Ori and I finally came to a complete halt on the bottom of the hill. '' Miksi nokkosia, AUH (Why nettles, ow)!''

I quickly snatched my hand out of the bush of those abominable plants and ran my other hand over the stinging limb. '' Kaikista maailman kasveista... miksi juuri niitä (of all the plants in the world, why these)?!'' I grimaced.

'' Oh, my ankle.'' Ori moaned from somewhere next to me before crying out louder.''OH, OW OW OW THAT STINGS!''

She, too, snatched her hand out of the bush of stinging plantation and cradled it for a moment in pained distress.

'' Why us?!'' I groaned as I pulled myself to my knees, cursing the fact that our tumble had reminded me a bit too much of what happened in the 'Lord of the Rings' movie where the hobbits had taken a tumble down the hill when escaping the wrath of Farmer Maggot.

'' Bad luck, maybe.'' Ori whimpered as she pulled herself into a sitting position and clutched at her injured ankle with both hands.'' This is one reason why I don't like green food!''

If I'd been in the mood for it, I would probably have laughed at the quote Ori had used in the 'Hobbit' movie.

Instead, I just patted her on the back and groaned as I pushed to my feet, ignoring the sudden ache in my side as I moved. Looking around me, I breathed out a slight sigh of relief as I caught sight of my mushroom basket lying on it's side halfway up the hill. The lid of hadn't come off it, thankfully, even after all that tumbling down the hill.

'' Ori, I'm so, so sorry about the tumble.'' I said guiltly and took Ori's offered hand and with a mighty pull I had her on her feet again, wincing as the young dwarf gasped in pain and clutched me tightly to avoid falling again.

Feeling sad and guilty for having slipped on the damp grass and causing more harm to the poor dwarrowdam, I helped her along; back up the we'd just tumbled from, snatching up the basket as we went, but this time keeping an eye on where I stepped to avoid another disaster.

'' Ei perkele. Ow, ow, ow!'' I muttered inwardly as I limped along. One of my arms was around Ori's waist (she looked so very pale) and the other was rubbing my lower back which I'd accidentally slammed against a wooden gate we'd met on the bottom of the hill.

I was honestly just as 'ghost' faced as she was from the scare of my feet slipping on the soft ground, and toppling over backwards down the rather big hill.

I unconciously tightened my hold on the young dwarrowdam and hoped no one of the gentle Shire-folk had noticed what had occured. Or our combined screams of terror.

We really didn't need the extra attention pointed at us from anyone.

'' M-Maija,'' Ori mumbled out suddenly,'' I- I don't feel so great.''

'' Do you feel the need to vomit, Ori?'' I asked worriedly, brushing a hand across her forehead.

I almost gasped as I realized it was warmer than it should have been. She was running a low-grade fever.

'' N-no,'' Ori answered, blinking her eyes at me and swallowing hard,'' I-I just don't feel very good.''

'' Your running a fever.'' I said worriedly and pulled her up as she stumbled on her feet.'' Ori, were you injured by those orcs in any way when you were escaping?''

'' I just... twisted my ankle as I was running,'' Ori answered me, whimpering slightly in discomfort,'' but I haven't slept much or eaten since that day. Maybe that's partially the reason I'm ill. ''

'' You sure there isn't anything else?'' I asked worriedly as I deftly unlatched the door of the gate and kicked the small wooden gate open as I hurried towards the 'Hobbit Hole' that was now so near.'' Any injuries I should know about?''

'' N-no I swear I... I...''

Whatever Ori had been trying to say was lost when her eyes suddenly snapped open and she stopped walking, almost making me stumble.

'' Ori?'' I asked in concern, when she clutched my jacket with whitened fingers.'' Ori, what's wro...

Ori slapped a hand over her mouth and pulled away from me, her face pale and distressed. Her other arm wrapped around her stomach as she lurched towards a large bush of red and purple Petunias.

''Voi ei (Oh, no)!'' I thought with a grimace of sympathy as I strode over quickly and helped the dwarrowdam crouch down to her knees. She immediately heaved onto the ground near the flower-bush.

I gently patted her back and kept Ori's short hair from falling in front of her face as she heaved again. The dwarrodam's whole body was shivering from the effort and what might have been from the chill she was feeling because of the fever.

'' My head hurts.'' she choked out between another heave.

'' You poor thing.'' I said softly as Ori finally stopped heaving and fell over backwards into my lap, panting. I brushed a hand across her forehead, frowning when I felt the increased heat against my own hand.

'' WHAT ARE YOU PEOPLE SKULKING AROUND IN MY GARDEN, FOR? BY YAVANNA, I'VE HAD ENOUGH OF PEOPLE COMING TO MY FRONT PORCH WITHOUT AN INVITATION OR WARNING! FIRST THE COMFOUNDED OLD WIZARD ARRIVED UNINVITED AND REFUSED TO TAKE A 'NO' FOR AN ANSWER! AND NOW YOU TWO! ''

I must say the whole shouting in a high voice had me jumping a mile in fright, and Ori was startled out of the stupor she'd fallen after her vomiting episode.

We both whipped around to see a very perturbed looking, middle-aged hobbit scowling down at us from where he was leaning against his opened door.

I quickly raised myself back to my feet, pulling my companion up the best I could with her trying to make it easier (despite still looking like she would retch, again).

I had no idea what to expect from Mr Baggins as I stood there awkwardly with Ori once again leaning against my side, her head drooping onto my shoulder and her shaking hands clutching at my clothing. But getting Ori inside and away from the outside elements was the first of my priorities.

As we stared at each other, the hobbit's eyes suddenly shifted to my trembling travelling companion and I noticed a shift in the previous anger; now he looked somewhat kinder and more sympathetic.

'' Good afternoon, Mr Baggins.'' I said hesitantly, and gave him a slight, but kind bow.'' Umm... as you might have already noticed, my travelling companion has become ill. Would you be so kind as to allow us lodgings to your house? At least until she is well.''

I saw the hobbit's eyebrows rise in shock and surprise and his mouth formed a wide'' O'' for several moments before he closed it with an audible snap.

'' G-good afternoon, lady,'' Bilbo stuttered out as he did a low bow,'' of course you and your companion are welcomed. Come on in.''

'' Thank you very much, Mr Baggins.'' I answered with a kind smile and practically carried my new friend up the small stone stairs and inside the hobbit's home.

I stopped at the doorway and leaned against the round door as I slipped off my green rainboots one by one (and my backpack) and set them beside the coat-rack.

Bilbo, who had been watching me, offered me a relieved and thankful look upon me having shed my outdoor boots and walked over as soon as I'd finished taking off my coat.

He told me he wouldn't take 'no' for an answer as he volunteered to help with shedding Ori off her boots and coat.

I gave a sigh of relief at his offer and helped by raising Ori's legs one by one so that Bilbo had an easier time sliding the foot-wear off her feet.

The both of us cringed slightly as Ori uttered a moan of pain when Bilbo was easing her boot off the injured area.

'' Heavens,'' Bilbo hissed out as he took in the sight of the dwarrowdam's badly swollen and bruised ankle,'' that doesn't look good at all. She needs to get off her feet and be resting.''

'' She also has a slight fever. And she vomited earlier into your flower bush before you came out to chase us out of your property.'' I told him, smiling sheepishly when the hobbit gave me a slightly admonishing glance.

'' I'm sorry we soiled your garden, Mr Bilbo,'' I told him with a helpless shrug of my shoulders,'' but Ori really wasn't feeling at all well.''

'' No, no,'' Bilbo answered quickly, suddenly looking rather startled,'' I apologise for giving you that look just now when your companion really couldn't help herself. ''

He sighed and put Ori's boots close to the wall next to my rainboots and stood up straight before lowering a hand on the dwarrowdam's forehead, muttering something under his breath about poor lasses and them not caring about their health when travelling.

'' It would seem that I'm still frazzled about Mr Gandalf's unwanted appearance.'' he continued as I stood there with an awkward expression on my face.'' I don't mean to be a rude host.''

'' It is fine, Mr Bilbo.'' I answered quietly.

''This poor Hobbit will be in quite a state by the time he is introduced to all the rest of the dwarven-Company, ''I realized with an inward frown,'' and he really doesn't deserve all that madness because of a certain hare-brained wizard having not the courtesy to warn him of their coming. I so want to tell him of their arrival but I can't risk the story to significantly change.''

We stood there for a moment in awkward silence, but at Ori's quiet whimper of distress, Bilbo was quick to take action from me, again.

'' Alright, I have several guestrooms for you to use,'' Bilbo said as he looked at Ori with sympathy in his eyes,'' but I suggest the one closest to one of the bathrooms in case she throws up again and chamber pots need to be cleaned.''

'' I think that'll work just fine, Mr Baggins.'' I told him gratefully and followed him down the long hallway, half-carrying Ori along beside me.

'' What in Yavanna's name happened to the lad, anyway?'' Bilbo asked me as he opened the guestroom door for me and waited until I was inside before following.

He pulled the covers aside and together we got Ori lifted onto the bed. She was already unconcious and shivering slightly by the time we got her onto the mattress.

'' She and her brothers were travelling to a meeting of their kin, when their camp was raided by orcs.'' I answered, aware of the shock Bilbo was showing at the word 'she'. I brushed a hand across Ori's sweaty forehead.'' Ori wasn't injured, thank goodness, but she slipped somewhere in the middle of her 'flight' and twisted her ankle.''

'' ORCS?!'' Bilbo exclaimed in shock and outrage, his eyes narrowed in anger and his mouth was pressed to a thin line.

'' You know what they are, don't you?'' I asked as I gently eased Ori's plum colored cardigan from her body and draped it over a chair. The long sleeved white shirt she was wearing felt soft to the touch and I decided to just leave it on her.

'' By Yavanna, of course.'' Bilbo said with a grimace. ''Anyone who'd been bothered to learn the old tales know that such abomination still exist in Middle-earth. Though I've thankfully not come across one since after the horrific happenings of 'Fell Winter'.''

I nodded with a grimace, knowing that he would soon be seeing too much of the thrice bedamned creatures on the coming quest.

'' I shall go and gather some cold water, a cloth, bandages and ointment to treat her ankle and the slight fever.'' Bilbo said as he walked towards the door.'' I'll be back in a moment.''

'' Thank you, Mr Baggins.'' I told him with a smile and held it until he was out the door before dropping it.

...

I felt like crying again as I took off my ornamental, blood- red hair-tie and brushed out my thick, shoulder length blond hair (which curled naturally) from its braid.

I then looked around the homely decorated room we were staying, taking in the furniture and wood-carvings that reminded me so much of the room I'd had in my grandparents old house before they'd moved to the city. Without the roundness of the doorways and windows, that is.

I missed my father, stepmother and sisters so very much, but grandpa had always been the one I'd been closest. We were so similar in manners; something that had always brought amusement to the rest of our relatives.

Grandpa had always seemed so young and hail despite his old age. Too young, I sometimes thought during the nights I'd spent at my grandparents house. While my grandmother sure had shown her age, grandpa always remained hail and somewhat young looking despite the nice, long grey beard he'd grown. His stunningly bright blue eyes (which always twinkled with mischief and love towards his family whenever we spent time together) where the same color and shape as mine.

The very same sort of eyes that darkened to a stormy blue whenever a dark, brooding expression came over either of our faces. It had never failed to make my father laugh at how similar the two of us looked when that happened.

It didn't happen all that often often. It usually it happened when grandpa thought of my grandmother's death some years past; or when he recalled the horrors of the Winter War and the war that followed afterwards.

And very rarely it happened when our grandfather dared to remember his own lost family. A family he hadn't spoken much about; and whenever I'd had the bravery to ask, he'd been very vague and secretive. Even to me whom he was the least secretive.

For the life of me I was never able to understand the reasons as to why he needed to hide anything about his own family, but he did anyway. Despite my pleads of him to tell me more about those people.

...

I choked on a small sob, feeling the pain of not being where I belonged and pulled my feet onto the chair(and gripped my shins as I rested my head on top). Tears rolled down my cheeks and splashed down on my knees.

'' Are you alright, lady?''

'' I just... I miss my family.'' I muttered quietly, admitting that my feelings weren't happy. '' I'm so very far from home.''

I quickly sat up and dropped my feet as the hobbit placed a small bowl of cool water on the bedside table before he sat down himself.

Bilbo gave a small 'humming'' sound and gave me a sympathetic look before turning to place a wetted cloth on Ori's forehead before turning his attention to the dwarrow maiden's swollen ankle. He took out a large jar filled with some sort of ointment that smelt like herbs and started rubbing the ointment gently on the injured limb.

Ori uttered a soft groan at the touch and wriggled around on the bed.

I leaned over to rub her shoulder and whispered in her ear that she was safe inside Bag End.

I then helped Bilbo by gently lifting the limb high enough for the hobbit to have an easier time wrapping it with soft looking white bandages.

When he'd finished, I lowered the ankle down on a small pillow which Bilbo had reached out to grab and set on the bed for such purpose.

'' Poor lass.'' Bilbo muttered turning to look at me.

I frowned questionably as he flinched and his hazel eyes widened ever-so slightly.

I was unsure of what had made him flinch like that, and before I could ask, the hobbit was already dabbing my neck with a clean cloth slathered with cool water. I realized it must have been the cut done by the small dagger pressed against my neck the moment I felt the unexpected sting.

I winced at the sensation and closed my eyes for a moment. I had, at one point, kept a hankerchief pressed to the injury to stop the bleeding but had forgotten about the injury hours ago.

And my shirt collar was pretty high and it must have kept the cut from being noticeable to my travelling companion. Otherwise Ori might have pressed the matter as she'd been the one to cause it to form.

'' What in Yavanna happened to your neck?'' Bilbo muttered as he took the jar and carefully smeared the ointment on my neck, making me stiffen from the sting it caused. '' This is a rather deep cut, you know. Not deep enough to aquire stitches but deep enough to need bandages. Why leave it unbandaged?''

I looked sheepishly at the hobbit as he wound a bandage carefully over the cut.'' I knew about the cut but my mind was preoccupied with other matters.''

Bilbo just''tutted'' at me with a slight admonishing glare which brought in mind a caring uncle or something similar.

'' Right, now that I've finished caring for you, I shall go and heat some water for camomile tea and something to bring down your travelling companion's fever. And you shall drink a tea that will stop any infection from appearing on that cut, understood.'' he said, fixing me with a look that said to rest.

'' Thank you, Bilbo Baggins.'' I answered with a laugh at his ''mothering'' tendensies.'' Would you also have some coffee that I could drink afterwards. I'm not very fond of tea.''

'' If I recall the state of my pantry correctly, I might indeed have what you ask.'' Bilbo answered thoughtfully as he stood up.

'' Thank you again, Mr Baggins,'' I said with a kind smile,'' for everything you've done for Ori and me.''

'' Just call me Bilbo.'' the hobbit said with a chuckle and patted my shoulder as he made for the door. '' I might not like annoying wizards asking me to go on adventures that make me late for dinner. Or people coming to my house uninvited. Neither do I like people skulking around my flower bushes; but I never turn away injured or sick travellers.''

My smile was even wider as I watched him walk over to the door.

'' Oh, would you like something to eat with your tea and coffee?'' Bilbo suddenly asked as he peeped from behind the already closing door.

This time I did laugh, my voice bright and without intent to cause hurt.

'' Why yes, Bilbo, that does sound wonderful.'' I answered him.

…...

'' MAIJA! Wake up! Please, wake up!

I grunted lowly and struggled to sit up straight on the living-room armchair I'd found to be extremely comfy after keeping an eye on Ori for so many hours. Last I saw her, and before Bilbo had forcefully herded me out of the room, her fever had come down and she'd been sleeping peacefully.

Unable to rest, I'd found myself exploring the inside and outside of the hobbit-hole, noting all the the pantries (two of them firmly locked), bedrooms, two additional bathrooms and more than one fireplace. I'd also admired all the expert wood-work done to the house to make it so homely.

Then at some point I'd ''crashed'' on the living-room armchair and fallen asleep.

'' Hmm... Ori?'' I mumbled quietly as I opened my eyes.'' How long have I slept? What time is it?''

There she was, sitting on an old worn cushion and an old blanket wrapped around her for additional warmth. She was leaning her other shoulder on my knees but her eyes were fixed to my face.

'' It is in the evening.'' Ori answered me with a smile that didn't quite reach her eyes.'' Bilbo told me you exhausted yourself by looking around his house when you should have gone to bed; and for some odd reason you decided to replenish his wood-stock.''

She pointed at the large pile of wood sitting next to the fireplace.

I had to smile at her admonishment.

'' Is that so,'' I said with a dry laugh and closed my eyes as a sudden wave of tiredness swept over me again,'' for there was no problem with helping our host with the housework even when it wasn't asked. But I wonder, Ori, did I start talking in my sleep at anytime? I do that sometimes.''

'' Actually, you did talk in your sleep.' 'Ori answered in a rather strange voice. '' And you revealed some information that was truly unexpected, and startling.''

My eyes snapped open and I glanced down at the young dwarrowdam with a rather startled expression on my face.'' And... what did I happen to say?'' I asked her in a hushed, panicked tone of voice.

'' You... ranted something about the Valar being responsible for you being taken from your home and the world you know and left to survive in Middle earth the best you could with little belongings.'' Ori answered with a small frown on her face as she glanced at me.'' You cried about being far away from home and that you miss your family.''

Ori looked so miserable it made my heart clench painfully in my chest.

'' You... you also ranted about what happened between us when you mentioned your needed to come to the Shire; how it was unfair that you were being judged on being from the race of men. You wondered wether the prejudice against you was caused because of what happened in the aftermath of Smaug taking over Erebor. If the prejudice to you was because my race had to go through unfare treatment in their quest to find another place to live.''

She started crying quietly and I swallowed hard as I sank deeper into the soft armchair. Tears of my own started falling down my cheeks.

'' I wasn't even born when Smaug attacked Erebor.'' Ori whispered brokenly.'' But I've heard tales from my people that told many incidents where men were more prone to mocking us dwarrowes, giving them unfair treatment rather than giving our race true aid in their struggles to find a new place to call home.''

I swallowed hard at her words, sparks of anger kindling in my heart despite knowing I'd already forgiven Ori for what she'd done.

'' There are people from your race who lived through all that.'' I whispered harshly.'' They remember, and their prejudice run deep. Deeper than I can truly understand because I didn't live what they all went through. I can never truly understand how they must have felt in that moment of despair when they realized their home had been invaded. ''

I breathed in and out as I tried to calm down the anger in my heart.

'' Much like I can't fully understand what my grandfather and grandmother had to go through decades ago when a war between humans threatened to forcefully take away all the land which I was born in.''

''You are afraid of being in Middle-earth,'' Ori stated sorrowfully, looking up at me with mournful eyes; apparently my words had hit home, hard,'' because you do not know what to expect from the new land.''

'' I do not know this world like I know the one I belong in.'' I whispered out.'' Not in the way someone would know by living in it for decades and decades. But I know things that haven't even happened yet, because for some twisted reason a writer from our world created a fairytale that turned out to be absolutely true. That scares me more than you could possibly imagine, because a persons history and future can be read on those pages. I'm... a totally opened book, and if any evil realizes this I would be in so much trouble.''

'' You are not an open book.''

I looked down at Ori and saw the fear palpable in those irises.

'' You. Are. Not. An. Open. Book!'' Ori said again insistently.'' You mentioned knowing about things that haven't even happened (in your sleep, that is), but when you tried saying anything of such matters, you stopped breathing. You stopped breathing thrice in you sleep!''

I froze completely at those words words and looked at Ori in silence as she buried her face into my knees, her frame shivering slightly as she probably relived something that had had to do with me.

'' She's right, you know.'' Bilbo spoke up as he came over carrying a tray with three cups sitting on top, looking very shaken up himself. His face was very pale and a lingering fear was in his eyes as he handed me a warm mug of hot coffee.'' You started mentioning something that hadn't happened, but before you could finish anything of great importance, the words died in your throat and you stopped breathing for several seconds. Its like the Valar are purposefully stopping you from revealing too much.''

I took in another deep breath and sipped at my hot coffee as I tried to calm my still racing heart.

'' Mitä... helvettiä tämäkin meinaa (what the hell does this mean)?'' I muttered quietly after I'd swallowed, earning some strange looks from the dwarrow and Hobbit.

I ran a shaky hand through my blond wavy curls.

The revealation that I'd stop breathing if I talked of the quest was quite frightening to think about; but at the same time it also felt reassuring because now I had some sort of answer as to why I couldn't tell them everything.

Then again, I would have to prove that theory to the other dwarves, and perhaps Gandalf, if they didn't trust the words coming from Ori and Bilbo.

'' Mikä hemmetin sotku (what a freaking mess)!'' I couldn't help but groan out.

'' Maija, I'm so sorry about giving you that injury.''

Ori's despondent voice brought me back to the present and made me touch her shoulder reassuringly as she sat up and rested her elbows in my lap

'' You had you reasons to be suspicious,'' I quickly said,'' and we got through it all without killing each other. Not that I even wanted to commit such a thing.''

''Still...'' Ori mumbled out sadly.

'' You attacked me out of suspicion,'' I answered firmly,'' and I blatantly lied to you about Gandalf having told me he would be here in the Shire. I lied to you about not knowing of your purpose in the land of the Hobbits out of self preservation, but it was still a blatant lie.''

Tears started dripping down my cheeks.'' But there is truth in the fact that I need Gandalf's wisdom in trying to determine how I can possibly get back to my home country. Back to where I belong.''

Ori just nodded at my words, but Bilbo decided to speak up:'' I've come to believe that you being from another world, is indeed not a mad-woman's raving. For as you slept, you cried and shouted something in a strange language I've never heard of until today. And just some time ago you spoke again in that same tongue.''

'' Yes, it might sound strange to your ears, but its the language spoken where I live.'' I answered him with a nod. '' The place I live in is called ''Suomi''. The culture holds many differences compared to Middle earth; for example women are treated equally to that of males when it comes to providing enough money for ones family to buy food and clothing.''

I gave a small smile and rubbed a hand across my face.'' Women aren't acquired to wear dresses (hence the clothes I'm wearing right now). And women can join the army and learn to fight, if they so wish.''

I smiled at Ori's and Bilbo's wide-eyed expressions as they listened to me with rapt attention.

'' And great many other things are different from that world.'' I said softly.'' I can talk about them later, but right now I wish to be alone and to get some fresh air outside. I need a place to think. Alone.''

I sat up straight and moved to get off the armchair. Ori removed her limbs from my lap and moved aside so I could stand up.

I did so with some effort and winced at the pins and needles in my legs. I gave an annoyed curse in my mother tongue and toddled around for a moment to get the blood circulation going in my unused legs before walking towards the rack where I'd discarded my blue coat and rainboots.

I slipped on the coat but not the boots. I took the boots and carried them towards the back of the Hobbit Hole where another door led outside and towards Bilbo's wood-shed.

Cutting firewood with an axe had always managed to calm me down and bring my thoughts back to earth; and I was sure it would the trick here, too. No matter how gloomy my thoughts were at the time.

I had just opened the back door and slipped my boots on when the first'' ding-dong-aling-dang'' was heard from the front door.

'' Dwalin son of Fundin, I think.'' I muttered so quietly that no one heard my voice.'' Ei Saatana mikä sotku tästä tapaamisesta vielä tuleekin. Voi Bilbo-parka (Damn, what a mess this meeting out to be. Poor Bilbo)! ''

I quietly closed the back door and made my way towards the wood-shed with determined steps.

...

I don't know how long I'd stayed in that shed, but when I'd tired from wood-hacking I'd started carving wood which worked to calm my mind just as well as the wood-hacking had managed to achieve. There just wasn't anything more calming than staying in this tiny shed with wood surrounding you from all sides and the candle set on a bronze candle-stick holder bringing light to the room.

I had no want to join the dwarven festivies, as my mind wasn't in the right state to handle song, laughter and loud burping (though I did wish I had a mug or bottle of strong alcohol with me).

I smiled as I finished my latest carving (a hobbit holding a mug and plate) and set it down on a wood-stump with the few others I'd finished carving. This was the only arftful skill I possessed as I had no skill in drawing or painting like my middle sister. And unlike my youngest sister, my knitting skills were atrocious.

But wood-carving was something I'd always been fond of, and had any natural skill in. So I practiced it any change I had, sometimes driving my parents mad from all the small ornaments I'd had stashed in my bedroom.

Knock Knock! Click, creak!

My head snapped up as the door creaked open and my hands stilled on the latest carving, my body tense with nerves, but that fell away the instant it turned out to be only Bilbo carrying a large picnic basket in his hand.

'' Bilbo?'' I questioned, seeing his tired and drawn expression as he walked over towards where I was sitting (not before locking the door behind me, that is).

'' Needed a bit of peace from all the madness.'' Bilbo grumbled as he sat down on a free stump of wood and set the basket down between us.'' My whole pantry has been pillaged by dwarves and mud trod into my carpet.''

He winced as he handed me some food on a platter and I took it without question (after shoving my ''puukko'' into my jacket pocket) just silently listened to him vent out all his bottled up frustration.

'' My plumbing is all but destroyed and my mother's West Farthing crockery has been thrown and kicked around like their just ordinary everyday objects that can be replaced if broken.'' Bilbo continued with bitterness in his voice.'' And Gandalf thinks its all in good fun and is trying to set me up to going on an adventure to regain the home of the dwarrows. Though I'm sure your already aware of what's been going on in my house!''

He threw up his hands in frustration:'' I had no warning from the foolish wizard that I'd be hosting for thirteen dwarves! I don't understand what they doing in my house when I'd specifically told Gandalf I would not be stepping foot out the Shire!''

'' I'm sorry for what you've had to go through with these people.'' I said softly and with sincerity.'' I wish I could have warned you of their coming.''

'' You would not have been able to warn me, no matter how much you would have wanted to tell me, Maija.'' Bilbo answered with a small smile.'' You need not to apologise.''

I nodded, but I still couldn't help but feel sorry for the poor hobbit who had so kindly taken Ori and me into his home; had nursed the young dwarrowdam back to health and had taken care of the injury on my neck. I conciously fingered the soft bandage wound around my neck for a moment before digging into the platter of food.

Mmm! Sausages, bread, cheese, tomatoes and peas and beans!

All tasted like heaven and wonderfully filled my almost empty stomach.

I spared a glance at Bilbo and had to smile as I watched the hobbit hungrily devouring the food on his own plate. I felt relieved that he'd found a time and place to fill his own stomach, with all the worrying and running-about as the dwarves pillaged and devoured his food-stock.

'' Oh, Bilbo,'' I sighed fondly, and placed the empty platter back in the picnic-basket,'' that really was excellent food. Thank you so much.''

'' There's more where that came from.'' Bilbo chuckled with a smirk on his face as he too put away his empty platter and reached out in the basket again. '' You might have taken note of the other pantries in my house as you explored my home. As soon as the first dwarrow came inside I slipped off without him noticing and locked the other two pantries.''

I gave a wide smile as I was handed a large piece of seed-cake. I loved all kinds of sweets and this piece of cake looked just delicious. I took a small bite and immediately gushed at the mouth-watering taste:'' This is wonderful, Bilbo.''

Knock! Knock!

Bilbo and I both froze mid-bite and looked at the door apprehensively, but then a familiar voice spoke up.

''Maija? Bilbo? Could I come inside, too?''

'' Ori?!'' I exclaimed with a smirk as I almost flew towards the door (still eating the piece of seed-cake) and opened the lock with the key which Bilbo had left on the door.

I ushered the young dwarrow maiden inside and laughed at her almost panicked look as she slipped inside like an orc was on her heels and pulled the door closed behind her, grabbing the keys from my hand and locking the door quickly behind her.

'' Judging from the look on your face and you barrelling into our small refuge, you've had to put up with overbearing older brothers. Am I right, Ori?'' I asked the young dwarf who had walked over to where Bilbo was sitting.

A more amused expression had come over the hobbit's face at my quirk.

'' Ugh, its worse than you could possibly imagine.'' Ori moaned as she plopped down on a large stump next to Bilbo.'' The attention was fine the first half an hour upon finding Dori and Nori alive and mostly unharmed. But when a dam can't even get a moments peace without them following me around everywhere and making sure my fever hadn't sprung up again and having Oin's concotion poured down your throat for good measure...''

She gave a violent shudder, and I broke down laughing (bent over clutching my knees) at the look of absolute disgust on her face.

Bilbo looked like he couldn't quite make up his mind about wether to laugh or admonish me for my reaction.

''...I needed some peace from them.'' Ori finished, looking at my reaction with amusement.

'' I needed some time to calm down, too, Ori.'' Bilbo moaned out as he took a bottle of wine and opened the thing expertly. He poured a tiny cup-full and gulped it down before handing it over to Ori who took it thankfully.'' Your brothers 'overflowing' gratitude towards me for having taken good care of you whilst you had that fever simply left me overwhelmed.''

I laughed harder at Bilbo's words and almost fell backwards on my butt before I managed to catch myself.

The Hobbit, though, was less amused and it earned me the stink-eye.'' Oy, lass, would you cease laughing already! It wasn't so terribly amusing.''

I uttered one last chuckle at their expense and wiped the tears from my eyes before walking back over to stand beside my wood stump and took the bottle from Ori as she handed it over to me.

'' Then I'm glad to have had the presence of mind to stay out of the whole apparent madness going on in Bag End.'' I agreed with an amused smirk.'' I know I must meet the foolish wizard at some opportunity, but I found myself unable to leave this cosy sanctuary.''

'' I must say this is much better than what's happening inside,'' Bilbo muttered, taking another small cup-full of the wine when I handed it to him,'' for the dwarrows have just been informed that Gandalf has somehow managed to loose a very important key...''

'' To a hidden door to the place we were supposed to be heading to on our quest.'' Ori muttered out as she took the bottle from Bilbo and took a sip before handing the bottle to me.'' To the lower halls of Erebor.''

I choked on the wine and sank onto the wooden stump, suddenly feeling the urge to start howling again, even with the whole news being a very serious matter.

'' Excuse me, what?'' I spluttered in my shock as anxiety started taking hold. What would this mean for the company's quest to reclaim Erebor from Smaug the Terrible, anyway?!

I could only imagine how the whole thing must have played out with Gandalf being his mysterious, wizardly-self and flourishing in the knowledge that he had the key with him, only to realize that he no longer had it in his keeping.

'' How did such thing come to be?'' I asked, coughing slightly before taking another long sip of wine.

'' Don't ask me.'' Bilbo muttered as he suddenly grabbed the bottle from my hands.

'' Gandalf the Grey got everyone so excited and then such thing happened.'' Ori muttered out, shaking her head.'' Everyones in an uproar, and Thorin Oakenshield is absolutely furious at Gandalf. So are Mr Balin and Mr Dwalin.''

'' No voi helvetti!'' I groaned out, smacking a hand to my forehead.'' How can such a powerful and supposedly wise wizard just loose something of such great importance?''

Ori just shook her head in dismay, lifting up and fingering the carved wood piece I'd made into a reindeer. She looked so absolutely crestfallen that it made my heart ache for her.

Reaching over, I hugged the young dwarrow around the shoulders.

Even Bilbo looked sympathetic as he watched us, fingering the small piece of wood I'd carved into a hobbit.

'' You two can have those carvings if you'd like to keep them.'' I said softly as Ori finally pulled away from my arms.

Bilbo looked suitably delighted at my words and even Ori gave a small smile.

I grinned,yawning, and stretched out my hands and arms back; hearing a pop in my spine at the motion. One of my hands also happened to smack against the large pile of wood behind me and my coat.

CLING

'' OW!'' I gasped out as my hand hit the wood and jacket.

Something hard and metallic was in the pocket.

''It might have been my other pocket knife for all I know!'', I thought with much sarcasm as I rubbed what must have been a bruised hand.

'' What was that sound?'' Ori asked curiously, looking at me as I nursed my aching hand.

I just mumbled another curse and opened the zipper of my jacket pocket. I fished around for a moment before freezing suddenly; I blanched as I felt the cool metal in my hand.

The Key! The damn key in the forest!

Unexpected dread came over my heart as I was suddenly reminded of the odd shape of the key when I'd looked at it in the forest; not long before I'd suddenly found myself in Middle-earth.

'' Ei voi olla (it cannot be)!'' I whispered harshly as a sudden thought crossed my mind. I pulled my hand out of the pocket and brought the innocent looking key over to the light of the candle. My hands shook as I traced the runes (which hadn't been there when I'd found the key) on the key-handle.

Immediately a gasp escaped Ori's lips as she took notice of the large, old styled key I was holding in my hands. She, too, reached out and touched the metal gently (on top the runes carved into the metal),as if trying to determine wether she was seeing things or not.

'' That's.. that's made by my kin.'' she spoke in a hushed tone of voice.'' How do you have it?''

'' I... I found it in the forest of my country,'' I spoke in a strangled tone of voice as I took in what Ori had revealed with widened eyes,'' when I was looking for mushrooms. I never saw Gandalf there at all; and the surroundings around me just shifted from familiar to unfamiliar. ''

'' Is this the reason you found youself in Middle-earth, I wonder?!'' Bilbo spoke in awe as he, too reached out to touch the intricate carvings.'' How in Yavanna's name did it come to be in your world?''

I just shook my head in complete bewilderment, and suddenly scared, too.

Bilbo opened his mouth and was about to say something to me when suddenly the candle sitting between us three went out in a pluff of smoke and the darkness around all of us suddenly became more oppressive than it had been before.

Like the shadows were wriggling and moving to touch our very bodies.

'' AAAAAHHHHH!'' I couldn't help but scream in sudden fright as the wriggling darkness latched onto my bare skin like tangible, twitching ice cold fingers and practically flew to my feet at the suddeness of it all.

'' AAHHHHHHH!'' Ori shrieked shrilly and grabbed me around the waist.

'''AAAAAARRRGGGHHHHHH!'' Bilbo yowled the loudest of us all as he jumped from his seat and almost climbed over me in his moment of terror.

'' YOU THREE BETTER COME OUT OF THAT WOOD-SHED OR I WILL SMOKE YOU OUT OF THERE MYSELF! AND GET A MOVE ON!''

CRASH!CLING CLANG! SMACK!

Much stumbling and crashing occured inside the tiny wood-shed as the three of us tried to get to the door as quickly as we could in total darkness; whilst still clinging to each other in our sudden fright and bewilderment.

Bilbo, I'm sure, had dropped the almost empty wine bottle on the floor, I had forgotten my jacket were I'd left it and Ori was still squeezing the life out of me.

I fumbled with the key to Bilbo's wood-shed door for a long moment before managing to open it with shaking fingers. I was sure my face was as white as a ghost and my friends probably didn't look any better.

And thank goodness I'd maintained my grip on the key we'd been looking at with such rapt curiousity.

The three of us immediately crashed through the opened door and fell into a heap on the grassy ground with me on the bottom and Bilbo and Ori sprawled on top like a living hamburger.

'' Ori, forget the anger of Thorin Oakenshield,'' I groaned from underneath the pile of bodies,'' because Gandalf's wrath exceeds that of a dragon!''

'' Mahal, Maija,'' Ori groaned from somewhere near my ear,'' don't even...''

'' Joke!'' Bilbo gasped from where he was perched on top our small wriggling pile of bodies.

'' NOW, I'm sure the rest of us wish to be informed of your findings?!'' Gandalf thundered out as he glared down at us with flaming eyes.

The damn wizard didn't miss a thing, did he?! He must have been listening to us from behind the locked door of the wood-shed.

'' Hullukos olet, velho (are you crazy,wizard)?'' I mumbled out loud with heavy sarcasm as I sat up with a groan as soon as Ori and Bilbo had gotten off of me. ''Totta helvetissä sinä ja 'pikku ystäväsi' haluatte tietää jokaisen yksityiskohdan karmeasta onnestani (of course you and your little friends bloody well want to hear the details of my atrocious luck)!''

When I glanced at Bilbo and Ori, I was surprised to see the clear horror on their faces as they stared at something behind Gandalf. A chill went down my back, and I cautiously glanced back towards somewhere behind the angry wizard.

I suddenly had the want to run down the hill of Bag End, screaming bloody murder in finnish as I realized Dwalin was standing there with a rather murderous expression on his bearded face (with Grasper and Keeper held in front of him), staring right at me, Bilbo and Ori.

I swear that look could melt gold with it's intensity.

And even worse, there was Thorin Oakenshield in all his princely glory and with the slight gloom of light from the hobbit hole highlighting his features, he looked horribly like some dark creature of the night.

I uttered a small squeack and snapped back my head to fix Bilbo and Ori with a long-suffering look.

'' SAATANAN PERKELE!'' I thought in despair as Gandalf pulled me up by the back of my purple, long-sleeved shirt (with black- yarned skulls sewn into the fabric) and thick black hoodie that went down to my knees.

My hand clutched the key so tightly I could feel the sharp parts digging deeply into the skin. I could also feel the warm blood starting to drip down my skin and down my wrist.

Immediately Gandalf had his hand on my shoulder, and it felt like a vice attached to my limb, but when he looked down into my scared expression, his expression softened ever so slightly.

He started to steer me back towards Bilbo's smyle where the back door lay open-wide; past Thorin who gave me a withering glance, and past Dwalin who's eyes held no sympathy towards me.

At that very moment I actually felt like I was walking into a dragons den to be interrogated.

...


	5. Chapter 5

 

_The Hobbit, or There and Back Again_

  _And The Very Unexpected_

  _Journey of a Finn_

**...**

And that's how it all happened,Gandalf.'' I wrapped my part of the tale, my voice void of any mirth as I uttered a low chuckle that turned into a small hiss of discomfort as the healer of the group of dwarves,Oin, finished wrapping the puncture wound on my hand (which I'd myself foolishly created by grasping the key too tightly) in soft white bandages.

 

'' To think that it all started off as a mushroom hunt and end with you finding yourself in Middle-Earth.'' Ori mumbled as she fingered my yellow- shelled cellphone that was lying on the table.

 

All my meager belongings were displayed on the table, some of which (mainly the fold-able pocket knife and my ''puukko'') were being eyed by Nori, son of Fitoria,who was leaning over his sister's shoulder.

Fili and Kili were inspecting my water-bottle with the lid that turned into a cup for drinking water, tea or coffee.

'' Aye!'' I muttered before uttering a loud, honest snort of amused laughter when Nori suddenly reached for my '' puukko'' and was slapped on the back of the head by his elder brother brother, Dori, who was giving him the' I'm warning you' expression.

Even Fili, Kili and Bofur started laughing at the affronted expression on both the elder 'Ri's' faces as they stared at each other.

I smiled as Bifur reached from between his younger cousin (and the nephews of Thorin Oakenshield) for my foldable pocket knife laying on the table.

I nodged it closer to his fingers and he carefully looked it over, obviously trying to work out how the blade was to be pulled out from it's shell.

'' Pull here.'' I instructed the wild haired dwarrow, pointing where the blade peeked out slightly.

After a few futile tries, he did manage to pull it out. His fingers being huge compared to my tiny ones, it had been somewhat of a difficult feat.

I nodded at him thankfully as he gave the blade back to me and slapped Nori's fingers when the '' thief'' of the company tried to reach out for my other knife.

I reached in the pocket of my trousers and pulled out a block of wood as the wild haired dwarf slid my 'puukko' out of its sheath and inspected the traditional birch handled blade with interest before handing it over to me.

I quickly attached the strings of the sheath to my brown leather belt before beginning to casually carve the block of wood into an animal I'm sure would be mentioned at some point tonight, again, I might add.

I lifted my feet on to the table (an aquired 'nervous tick' that only happened when I was feeling uncomfortable over a situation)and leaned back in my chair.

This slip in manners earned me an admonishing glance from Bilbo, who sat squished between me, Bofur, Fili and Kili.

That look had me quickly swing my feet off the table (almost making the chair tip-over backwards) and a blush crept up my cheeks. I couldn't believe I'd done that to the kind Hobbit whom had been so nice to me.

'' I'm sorry, Bilbo. '' I muttered to the Hobbit who crossed his hands over his chest with a sigh.''I promise to clean the table later.''

'' Someone has already walked across my table,'' Bilbo answered, giving Fili a withering glance which he answered with a smirk,'' so having one more pair of feet on the table won't make a difference.''

I glared at Fili who didn't look the least bit bothered by my expression.

Gandalf uttered a slight chuckle at our exchange, and puffed a smoke ring from his pipe.

'' And you say where you come from, a famous writer J.R.R. Tolkien wrote a book abour Middle Earth without knowing that it truly existed.'' he spoke as he puffed out another smoke-ring.'' And that in you time these'' mo-vies'' were made about this important quest that was supposed to be a total secret. Moving paintings, you say?''

'' Yes,'' I answered as I whittled with the wood-piece under Bofur's and Bifur's interested glances as they leaned over my shoulder.'' And the people who were casting in the ''moving pictures'' were really quite accurate in their looks compared to the real people who are standing in Bilbo's smyle right now. Although I've noticed subtle differences...''

'' For example the truth that I'm a dwarrowdam.'' Ori piped in with a smile and an amused twinkle in her eyes

I gave a friendly smirk at the young scribe.

'' Yep, like that. I was rather shocked when she told me upon our first meeting. Although I didn't show it.''

'' So If I were to ask you to name the dwarrows inside,'' Gandalf said with interest in his voice,'' you would be able to name them? We haven't truly introduced anyone to you after bringing you inside...''

'' For the questioning.'' I finished wryly.'' The two dwarrows standing right behind me are Bofur and Bifur (the one with the hat being Bofur). Fili and Kili (the blond being Fili). Ori, Dori, and... No-NORI, get your hand out of my pocket before I throw this block of wood at your head!''

The young dwarrows burst out into howls at my annoyed and frustrated expression; and Nori gave me an impish grin as he stood back to stand beside his little sister.

Oh, unless I was wrong, the starfish-haired dwarrow could have already taken the pocket knife without me noticing...

But...

''Perkele!'' I muttered, brandishing the block at the dwarrow with the funny hairstyle,'' your doing the stealing just to annoy me, and doing it so obviously that its not hard to miss you doing the snagging. You wanted me to notice! ''

'' Me thin' you' righ'.'' Bofur voiced out, (as Nori only chuckled at my expression), through laughter as he reached out and took the piece of wood from my slightly slackened fingers.'' Hey, this 'll be a goo' toy once finishe'. Y' got som' skill ther', lass.''

'' I have no skill in drawing or or painting,'' I pointed out to the dwarf with the funny woolen hat that looked like a weather beaten' karvareuhka','' or knitting; so I'm glad to hold at least one skill that involves art.''

Bofur was about to reply when...

'' CAN WE KEEP TO THE IMPORTANT FACTS,'' Thorin suddenly thundered, making me flinch slightly at his tone of voice.

I stared right at him as he stood up and gazed at me with a burning look in his eyes.

'' You say that you hold knowledge of events that are in the future,'' Thorin spoke in a calmer voice, but it sounded no less unkind,'' but telling anything that hasn't occured yet would lead to you being unable to draw breath?!''

'' That's very true,'' I answered,'' based on what Ori and Bilbo witnessed when I slept. I haven't ventured to try my luck at it whilst awake.''

Ori shuddered violently and grasped my arm tightly.'' Please don't even think of doing it!'' she whispered vehemently.'' You could harm youself!''

'' And if no one else in the company believes me otherwise?'' I whispered back, reaching over to squeeze her shoulder lightly.''

'' And if I weren't to believe in you word's, lass?''

'' On que, Mr Oakenshield.'' I groaned out loud to Ori who shared my frustrated expression.

Fili, Kili and Bofur all had to stiffen their laughter in their hands, and even Bifur had to hide his amused grin. Ori and Bilbo just sighed at my words.

'' You must heed the words coming from your own kin, Thorin Oakenshield!'' Ori exclaimed with a look of deep hurt on her face.'' Or do my words mean nothing to a king?''

As Thorin Oakenshield looked suddenly thoughtful, Bilbo took a change to step in with words of his own. His expression was set and told much how he felt about his own words having held no value to the dwarf- king.

I smiled at the hobbit; his Took-side was surprisingly beginning to show ever so slightly, and so early in when the quest hadn't even begun yet.

'' I was there, too, '' Bilbo said,'' to witness her talk in her sleep of all the important information mentioned of her world. As well as the quite unfortunate events that came when she stopped breathing thrice in her sleep...''

Bilbo fixed the king with an admonishing look.'' It wasn't something you wanted to see once; let alone thrice.''

Thorin scoffed.'' So I should just blindly trust a halfling who holds no fighting skills?''

Bilbo noticeably bristled at the word halfling and I immediately lowered a hand on his shoulder.

'' A Hobbit, Mr Oakenshield.'' I stated without sounding angry.'' He's a hobbit. And why put his words null because he has no fighting skills? He may not be a fighter, but he certainly isn't dull, either.''

Thorin just sighed at my words and gave me a glare, which I returned, suddenly extremely frustrated with the whole situation.

'' What proof further proof must you need for my words to be proven elligible?'' I bit out, clenching my hands into fists,'' other than the words coming from you kin. And this kind hobbit, Bilbo Baggins, who was generous enough to allow one of your own kin into his home without question, nursed her back to health from the fever without asking anything in return. And you treat him with so little respect. ''

Gandalf gave a small'' humming'' noise and I noticed (from the corner of my eyes) that he was smiling at me.

What did he expect? Once someone had gained my respect, the respect would stay. And Bilbo was one of those people you couldn't help but like, no matter what faults he might've had (well, uptightness towards things that he didn't find comforting, or within the rules of his hobbit-ways, but still a very likeable person).

'' And I do not appreciate you questioning my little sister's integrity.'' Dori spoke up in an annoyed tone of voice as he came to stand behind Ori.'' Do her words truly mean nothing to you? For Mahal's sake, she was chosen by you to be the Scribe on this journey, afterall.''

I carefully turned my head to look behind me when I heard footsteps.

Nori had moved to stand on the other side of Ori's chair and was looking at the King with an unreadable expression on his face. One of his hands was on Ori's shoulder. The other, I had to do a double-take when I felt the warm touch of his hand on my shoulder.

I wasn't expecting anyone else from the company to be comfortable enough to touch me at all (Fili,Kili, Bofur, Bifur and of course Ori being the exception for the dwarrows).

'' Yes, what is the problem?'' I spoke up, looking at the king sitting across from me.'' Do you need deeds instead of words to confirm the words coming from a daughter of men to be believable? Because if that's what you want, then that's what I'm going to offer. I'm tired of skirting around this subject. Whatever I can do to bring closure to this, than I'll do it!''

'' Maija!'' Ori yelped as I stood up from my chair, and leaned forward over the table (grimacing slightly as my weary muscles protested over me standing up).

I gripped the table tightly, not wanting to fall over backwards and possibly deal with a concussion afterwards.

'' That map of yours has dwarvish runes that are h... cough,cough!''

I could immediately feel myself blacking out and I closed my eyes tightly, swaying on my feet. My sight darkened until only a small bit of light could be seen. Like a light coming from under a closed door.

Then that light disappeared, and so did my conciousness.

….

I did not know that I'd fallen over backwards as soon as I'd lost conciousness; nor the fact that someone had immediately grabbed me before I'd fallen on the hard floor.

I didn't feel the person lifting me in his arms and carry me over to the living room fire.

The first thing I realized when I woke up was the feeling of warmth and that something was draped over my shoulders, and my head was on something soft that was moving slightly. Someone was running a hand across my hair, and whispering something in my ear which I couldn't understand with my thoughts being as muddled as can be.

'' Ugh,'' I mumbled, my voice tired and rather weak '' never again!''

'' I hope you keep that promise.'' a familiar voice answered from somewhere. '' Although we can't really control what might happen in our sleep.''

I could now feel the lump beneath my head move slightly as the person stirred. '' That was even worse than what happened when you were asleep and talking, you know.''

'' What exactly happened after I started talking?'' I mumbled, trying to get my limbs working again so I could stand up, but they seemed to not be working properly at this time.

'' You started choking immediately and swayed on you feet before toppling over backwards,'' Ori answered, shaking her head slightly.'' Thank Mahal, Nori was able to grab you before you before you managed to hurt yourself.''

I nodded, and winced as I managed to slowly sit up. My head was spinning slightly and I had a thumping headache inside my skull.

I uttered a groan before I could stop myself, and suddenly a mug of some sort of medicine was put in my palm by the dwarwen- healer, Oin, who had been sitting on a chair near the fireplace.

I winced at the smell of the concotion, but obediantly started sipping it, knowing it would probably make me feel a lot more myself.

Still, the taste was anything but delicious.

I finished the last of it, uttered a hiss and noticeably shuddered as I handed it back to Oin, under the quiet laughter of Ori who had been watching me drink the tea.

'' I really don't enjoy tea.'' I mumbled.'' Especially not medicine tea, ugh. Give me coffee any day but drop the tea.''

Ori laughed harder whilst Oin and Dori looked slightly put-out at my words.

Of course, because Dori was tea-maniac and Oin a healer who brewed those medicine-teas to begin with.

'' Still, thank you, Oin.'' I said with a small smile towards the old, grey haired dwarrow.'' My head does no longer feel like its gonna fall off and I'm no longer so dizzy.''

Oin just shook his head in mild amusement and Dori suddenly started fuzzing over the blanket I hadn't realized had been draped over my shoulders.

'' Dori, please, I'm completely warm enough without the blanket.'' I exclaimed, trying to wriggle free of it but the dwarf held firmly to the blanket I was trying to shrug off my shoulders. '' Honestly I...''

'' Just keep the blanket for extra measure, lass.'' Dori said with a sigh.'' You sure gave as all a right scare, you know.''

'' I just wanted to prove a point which a certain king should have already believed.'' I mumbled out, glad that my thoughts were no longer sluggish.'' Especially when the proof comes from his own kin.''

'' I do thank you for trying to prove my sister's integrity, but I still think what you did was very unnecessary.'' Dori spoke with an admonishing look on his face.

'' Was it, now?'' I said, my voice a little sharp as I scowled down at my hands.'' For I hate the thought of being called a liar. I don't think most of the dwarrows here realize just how awful it felt to find yourself somewhere completely unfamiliar, when just moment ago you had been in very familiar woods. Its not normal.''

'' I think Ori did the moment she heard you crying out in your sleep, lass.'' Dori said, his expression softening ever so slightly as I stopped fighting his hands as they pulled the blanket further up my shoulders.

I gave a small sigh at that, and fiddled around in my pocket for my '''puukko and for the block of wood I had been carving. Well, I did find the wood-piece but my '' puukko'' wasn't where it was supposed to be.

I sighed again, slapping a hand across my face as I realized what must have happened to it. I handed the block of wood to Dori before standing up with the blanket draped over my shoulders.

'' What is it?'' Ori asked me sleepily from where she was sitting with another blanket draped over her legs.

'' My knife is no longer where its supposed to be,'' I answered with a sigh and Ori and Dori uttered a small groan at the news.'' NORI, YOU BETTER GIVE BACK MY KNIFE!''

Almost everyone of the dwarrrows jumped as my voice reached an octave compared to a shout as I stomped towards the copper haired, star haired dwarf who had a sheepish smile on his face as he leaned against the table.

My hands were on my hips as I stopped in front of him; my height being 5.1ft I towered over him slightly. I held out my hand out to him and he dropped my knife into my open palm.

'' This was a birthday gift from my grandfather,'' I told him with a small playful smirk, '' so please, if you can possibly contain your want to snag someone of their belongings, than please do so.''

I turned sharply and stomped off back towards the fireplace, laughing softly when I heard a loud ''slap'' and someone(Dwalin, possibly) start chastising the star-haired dwarf for having stolen something, again.

I had just sat myself in front of the fireplace, again, when Gandalf decided that bringing up the quest was a good idea.

Dori and Oin left to join the the rest of the company again, but Ori had decided to stay behind to keep me company as I continued to whittle with the piece of wood.

I tried to listen to the exchange between wizard and dwarrows; I really did, but my brain felt like it just wanted to sleep at this time and not take in what was being discussed.

'' And by burglar, I suppose you want someone who is an expert?'' Bilbo's voice could be heard from somewhere near Gandalf.

That finally caught my attention.

''And are you?'' A voice that no doubt belonged to Oin, asked.

''Umm... no,no, no I'm not...'' Bilbo stuttered but was cut off when the same dwarrow cried: ''He said his an expert, hey hey!''

'' I think he said he's not an expert. Poor Bilbo.'' I muttered out to Ori who looked just as tired as I felt.

'' I think you heard right.'' Ori mumbled.'' And its Oin who misinterpeted. Again, I might add.''

'' Hoh, loistavaa(great)! Someone better buy him a new ear trumpet before he misinterperts something else.'' I sighed, but was cut off when Bilbo, quite frantically tried to talk his way out.

'' No,no,no ,no ,no! I'm not burglar material. I've NEVER stolen a thing in my life!''

'' And that,my friend, was quite expected.'' I muttered to Ori who bit her lip to keep from laughing out loud. I really felt for poor Bilbo who was no doubt completely out of his element with all the dwarrows being cooped up in his homey smyle.

He actually seemed quite happy and excited when old Balin and his younger brother, Dwalin, started pointing out that he wasn't made for hard travel and fighting. This of course led to the others pointing out Bilbo's faults in loud enthusiastic voices.

And Bilbo nodded along, looking quite happy to be getting off the hook.

I rolled my eyes at Ori before finally getting up and sauntering over towards the rest of the group with Ori following right behind me. We stopped just behind Bilbo and I put a hand on his shoulder.

This made him give a loud cry of shock as he obviously hadn't expected me to come over to the table.

Bilbo's cry, of course, had everyones attention back on Ori and I, and i could only smile sheepishly at everyone.

'' ENOUGH OF THIS NONSENSE!'' Gandalf boomed out as the wizard stood up and toward over everyone seated around the table.'' IF I SAY BILBO BAGGINS IS OUR BURGLAR...''

I winced at the feeling of shadows closing in on me; very much like it had done when Ori, Bilbo and I had been in that shed. Ori uttered a sharp gasp from somewhere behind me and grasped my other hand whilst Bilbo backed away from Gandalf until his head hit me on the stomach.

I gave a small gasp at that, but gave Bilbo's shoulder a reassuring squeeze.

The company sitting around the table had expressions of discomfort and even slight fear etched on their faces. From what I could see.

'' THEN A BURGRLAR...he is.'' Gandalf finished and sat down on his seat once more.

The feeling of shadows closing in on you disappeared in a heratbeat, but it left the whole company slightly uneasy.

'' Ei saatana.'' I breathed out shakily as soon as I'd regained my breath.'' Gandalf, could you stop with the shadow-magic?! Wasn't once enough today?''

Everyones eyes were on me at my outburst, but Gandalf's expression revealed nothing as to how he might have felt about my words.

'' Gandalf,'' I sighed,'' I know the quest to the Lonely Mountain is important, but I need to ask... have you any answers to my situation?''

'' What situation would that be,dear?'' Gandalf asked.

''You know exactly what situation I'm talking about.'' I snapped, feeling immensily annoyed at the grey wizard. '' I told you of my problem getting home and now I'm asking you for answers because you probably know and understand the workings of the Valar better than I could possibly understand.''

'' What answers could I possibly give you,'' Gandalf answered, looking straight at me,'' for the Valar work in strange ways and even I can't hold all the answers. Perhaps you have been sent here for a reason.''

I had to turn around for a moment as a sob tried to work its way out of my throat. I shuddered and gripped the wall for a moment as I tried to hold in my emotions. I could feel hands on my shoulders, and I believed they were the two Middle-earthien's who knew me best.

'' And if I just want to go home, Gandalf?'' I choked out, my eyes cold. '' Who else could I possibly ask for guidance if not you. Lord Elrond, perhaps?''

I didn't notice the dwarves wince at the name of the Elf-Lord.

''Because unless its escaped your notice I'n not entirely familiar with Middle-earth's paths. Even with a map, I could be in danger of dying if I were to venture out in the wild on my own.''

If I'd had decided to look around me, I would have seen some of the dwarves, with fierce opinions of women needing protection, eyeing Gandalf with a'' are you going to help her home, or not?'' expression.

'' I cannot take you to Rivendell, unless you are willing to join our company.'' Gandalf answered with a devious smile.'' If you join, you will find yourself closer to your destination once you venture off from the company. And you might not even have to if I can advice the company to stop in Imladris.''

'' Something which will not happen,Gandalf.'' Thorin muttered sharply.''Ever!''

I gave a sigh, shaking my head at the enormity of the situation. It did frighten me to leave Bag End, but If I were to leave with the dwarrows I would be much safer, for sure.

I gave Gandalf a small gesture of acceptance and said: '' Well, its better than me trying to venture off in unfamiliar territory alone.''

Inwardly, I was fuming at the fact that the Maiar would be so casually taken everything I'd told him about my enormous problem, and that he had the audacity to sit there blowing smoke rings around.

SLAM! CLINK!

The half drunk mugs scattered around the table jumped and clinked against the wood of the table as Thorin Oakenshields massive fist struck the surface.

Everyone else became silent as the grave as he spoke.

'' Gandalf the Grey, I had my doubts about Bilbo Baggins the moment I saw him for the first time within these walls. And yet I can overlook his faults pending on your insistence that he has something to offer us...

He glared at me, and I found myself shaking with pent up anger at the way he was looking at me.

''… but having a daughter of men who bears vital information about our secret quest join our company? How will we know she won't betray us, or be a liason and distraction in our company?''

Gandalf opened his mouth to answer(no doubt to assure the king that I wouldn't betray the company), but I spoke my thoughts before he could voice his; I'd well and truly had enough of the blockhead's suspicions.

'' You actually believe I would be able to breath even a whistle about this quest to anyone seeking harm upon your company?'' I breathed out tiredly, fingering the half-finished carving of a dragon with outsretched wings, before setting it down on the table for everyone to see.

I saw Balin, and even Thorin wince ever-so slightly at the accurate carving with it's mouth wide open; and about to breath fire.

'' Smaug took away something important to your people.'' I said quietly, glancing at the carving I had made.'' A home; and made you all flee into the wilderness to suffer through cold and hunger when no one would help your kin.''

I slowly turned my eyes to regard the king, my eyes determined to make him reconcider his words of me not being allowed to join his company.

'' I did not loose a home quite like your people did,'' I said quietly,'' but I ''lost'' a home nonetheless. Can you even begin to comprehend how I might've felt when I found myself in unfamiliar land. A land which I'd always believed to exist only in books. A land wrought with dangers that could kill me. I can get killed if I venture out to find answers as to why I'm here...''

My voice had hardened slightly as I said this; and my eyes would probably have looked just as hard if i'd seen them.

'' But I need to venture out just the same, because apparently our wizard here doesn't hold all the answers to my plight. Will I not be allowed to seek home in any way possible?''

The earnestness, the plead that colored my voice at this last sentence looked to have struck a cord in the older, more suspicious dwarves. I saw them looking everywhere else but at me, whilst the younger generation (Fili, Kili, Ori and even Nori) where looking at me with somewhat sorrowful eyes.

''  **N** **o, hienoa** ( well,great)!'' I thought, realizing I might've used a bit more bite to my wording than was needed as I watched the Dwarrows fidget where they sat. I felt a large, warm hand with wrinkles spread over the skin land on my shoulder and I jumped.

It was Gandalf; looking more genuinely sympathetic than he'd been earlier. He squeezed my shoulder gently and I turned back to the dwarves, clearing my throat slightly before uttering a sheepish apology for having perhaps offended some of them with my forwardness.

I could feel Thorin's eyes on me, and instead of cowering under his eyes, I looked back into the piercing blue eyes. I felt calm, with Gandalf's hand onmy shoulder.

After a moment, Thorin motioned for Balin to hand out the contract to Bilbo Baggins.

Well, it went more along the lines of the contract being shoved into the poor hobbit's chest by the king himself when he refused to immediately take the parchment from Balin.

'' Umm... right.'' Bilbo mumbled as he quickly read through the contract that was ridiculously long.'' Wait minute... funeral arrangement's? Lazerations? Eviscation?''

Bilbo snapped his head towards everyone sitting around the table.

'' Incineration?'' he asked, sounding extremely disconcerted by the contents in the contract.

'' Aye, he'll melt the flesh outta ya' bones in a blink of an eye.'' Bofur voiced out with a teasing glint in his expressive face.

'' Right,'' Bilbo swallowed out looking very very pale in the face,'' I-I-I don't think I'm..''

'' Think furnace with wings!'' Bofur decided (for some twisted reason) to stoke the fire until it all would beome too much for the poor Shireling's nerves.

'' Ugh...'' Bibo swallowed, now looking decidedly pale in the face,'' C-could you not...''

'' On' momen' you' in the worl' of the livin','' Bofur continued deviously,'' an' the nex' a huge wall of flame comes at ya..''

POOF!

He made a wide motion with his hands.'' Searin' pain an' then nothin' more than a pile of ash remains.''

'' Ja tuoko on tarkoitus saada hänet vähemmän pelokkaaksi ( **And that's supposed to make him feel** **less afraid)**?!'' I thought incredulously as Bilbo looked very close to heaving.'' Ei saatana, mikä pölkkypää ( **Ei saatana,** **what a blockhead)**!''

'' The only calamity in these parts of middle earth is undoubtly the dwarf with the big-mouth.'' Gandalf pointed out loud which suddenly had almot every dwarrow in fits of laughter at the wizard's deadpan comment.

Even Bofur was laughing despite the joke being on him, and I almost howled in mirth, leaning against the table.

The only one that wasn't amused was Bilbo who looked suddenly quite mad at us, and Thorin just sighed, rubbing his temples (he looked like he was quelling a rising headache).

Dwalin and Balin were frowning at the uproar that had taken the people sitting round the table.

Thorin apruptly stood up and roared something in ''Khuzdul'' and slamming his hand on the table(looking very much like he'd done in the movie).

I uttered a small gasp at that, and immediately stopped laughing. The rest quitened soon after, looking nervous.

For a moment no one spoke, then Bilbo decided to open his mouth.'' So,'' he said, sounding surprisingly calm despite the plaeness of his face,'' that's the reason for the funeral arrangements?''

'' Aye,'' Balin answered with a nod in Bilbo's direction,'' Thorin wanted it absolutely clear that once the contract is signed, the responsibility of your life is your's, and your's alone. Thorin isn't expected to hold responsibility for what could happen once we step foot into the wild.''

Bilbo's eyes looked like they were about to pop out of his eyeholes, and Gandalf threw the dwarrow a rather withering look which Thorin ignored quite masterfully.

'' I will not be answerable for his fate,'' Thorin commented calmly,'' or her's for that matter; if she decides to join the company for the time being until she is sent home.''

He turned to look at me, a barely noticeable smirk on his face as his eyes beheld what could only have been a very stumped expression that had overcome my face.

I hadn't expected him to actually go ahead and agree so quickly with Gandalf's reasoning as to why I should come along. Or was it because I'd stood up to him with my reasonings?

Finally I nodded at Thorin Oakenshield, who sighed and looked away from me before saying:'' Very well. Balin, make a second contract that covers everything to a point where she'll leave the company. ''

He turned to me.

'' And you will sign that contract if you wish to be a part of this company.''

'' Understood, Mr Oakenshield.'' I responded, not taking notice of the splutter of indignation that escaped Bilbo's mouth at my vocal consent.

But I did notice when the Hobbit slammed the contract on the table and snapped indignantly:'' This is madness. Absolute madness on your part to go on a journey where there is a very real possibility of finding yourselves face to face with a live dragon that will incinerate you into ashes if he finds you invading its nest. And I do not understand why you would let not one, but two women join your company?''

'' Bilbo, they have both agreed upon this, and we will have to live with their decision.'' Gandalf voiced out before a scowling Thorin could unleash his words on the hobbit.

'' Oh, well that is just perfect now.'' Bilbo said sarcastically with a scowl of his own. '' And please enlighten me one more time as to why I should just disappear out of the blue, Mr Gandalf? I am a Baggins, of Bag End!''

'' But you are also a Took, my dear Bilbo.'' Gandalf answered, making Bilbo utter an indignant huff at his answer.'' And you have been sitting quietly for far too long in my opinion. Did you know that your great -grand unkle Bulroarer Took was so large he could ride a real horse?''

'' I know that, Gandalf.'' Bilbo muttered, staring at the contract lying on the table. '' But I don't see why it should be relevent for you to mention him.''

'' Well he was, that large.'' Gandalf continued, unaware of the interested glances the dwarves were now throwing at poor Bilbo who was blushing slightly.'' In the battle of Green Field he charged the goblin ranks...''

'' THANK YOU GANDALF!'' Bilbo exclaimed before the wizard could finish.'' But I belive I've already heard this story and I'm quite inclined to belive its all made up. And even if it weren't I should think you'd realize I'm nothing like him at all.''

'' Bilbo, I quite believe that despite your continues words that you are not like '' Bulroarer'' Took, you are quite like at the moment. Your Took-side is showing.''

Bilbo looked like he wanted to shout at the ''Istari'' again, but decided against it at the last second.

'' Can you promise me,then, that I will return, Gandalf?'' he spoke in a low, defeated tone of voice that made me slink over to the poor Hobbit and give him a comforting squeeze on the shoulder.

Gandalf sighed, shaking his head at Bilbo whom was leaning heavily against the table and staring right at him with soulful, expressive eyes that hid none of the fear and uncertaintly he must have been feeling.

'' No,'' the wizard answered,'' I can't promise you will return. And if you do, dear Bilbo, you won't be the same.''

'' That's what i thought.'' Bilbo breathed out as he lightly squeezed the hand I'd put on his shoulder before lifting it off. He then pushed away from the table.'' I'm sorry Gandalf, I won't sign this contract. You've chosen the wrong hobbit.''

He then turned to me and said:'' I wish you all the luck in the world, Maija. I hope you will find your way back to your family.''

'' Thank you, Bilbo.'' I answered softly as I watched our host leave the dining-area and disappear into the shadowy corridors of Bag End.

The rest of the company was in complete silence as the hobbit walked away with a stiff back and clenched fists.

'' It would seem that we've lost our burglar.'' Balin voiced out with a deep sigh.

'' Maybe I should have kept my mouth shut.'' Bofur muttered, rubbing the back of his head.

''Aye, for once could you have kept your jokes to yourself,lad.'' Gloin muttered with a sigh.

''Its not like his joke did anything significant.'' Dori put in. '' The lad was already against the whole idea of becoming our burglar.''

''Aye, but Bofur's mouth sure didn't help, either.'' Dwalin answered sarcastically with a deep frown on his face.''

I just shook my head silently. Bilbo was such a nice and caring hobbit, and I hoped he would eventually decide to come with us. Hopefully nothing important had changed by me having come to Middle-Earth; for all our sakes.

I wasn't supposed to be here, afterall. I didn't want to be here. I didn't want to have to join in on this dangerous journey, for even if there was a change that I'd be sent home in Rivendell, there was still the ''Three Trolls'' and the Warg-Riders I'd have to survive before I could have hope.

'' Maija, are you alright?''

I turned to Ori whom was looking at me a with slight worry. I smiled at the slender dwarrowdam reassuringly.

'' Just thinking, Ori. I'm okay.'' I answered her quickly.

'' What about,lass?'' Bofur asked me curiously and I smirked playfully at him. The guy was a bit of a joker, but he was a nice fellow.

'' Just wondering how much I'll make a fool out of myself on this coming journey tomorrow.'' I answered.'' Hopefully I'll learn how to make a fire with flints. And other things needed to survive in the wild.''

'' You don't know how to use flints?'' Gloin asked, somewhat stunned.

'' There's something called ''matches'' in our world that are used to make fire.'' I told the red haired dwarf.'' You'll have to teach me how to use a flint.''

Gloin muttered something about useless women, which had me frown darkly at him.

'' Well excuse me for not having the need to learn how to use one in the first place,'' I muttered out,'' but I'm willing to learn.''

Gloin just muttered some more to himself before wandering out into the living-room and crouching near the fireplace. He took something out of his pocket and layed it down on the floor before taking some wood into his hands and setting it down into a pattern on the inside floor of the fireplace.

It must have been the flint, I realized, and instead of standing around like a ''frightened little girl'' I strode over to the red haired dwarrow and crouched down beside him.

Gloin looked up at my approach and nodded at me, before gesturing towards the object on the floor.

It looked like I was getting my first opportunity to learn something that would benefit me in the near future.'' I thought as I picked up the flint and turned to the dwarrow whom began to explain the best ways to use the fire-starter in my hands.

As I took my first try at striking the flint, I swore to myself that I'd take every opportunity to learn any survival skills from these dwarrows.

'' Ja ehkä onnistun selviämään hengissä ( **and maybe I'll** **succeed in staying alive** ) .'' I thought morbidly, striking the flint a second time.

The flames roared to life, getting fuel from the already hot embers.

I stared into the hot flames, the flint still held tightly in my hands, knowing that this was the very same fireplace that Gandalf would use in the future to find out the secrets of the ''One Ring''.

...

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author Notes: ''Pölkkypää'' literally means ''blockhead'' in finnish.


	6. Chapter 6

_The Hobbit, or There and Back Again_

  _And The Very Unexpected_

  _Journey of a Finn_

**…**

I uttered a long yawn as I shook the still clinging tiredness off my limbs and sat up in my soft warm bed that I'd stumbled into last night, only to fall asleep as soon as I'd went under the warm covers.

I brushed the tendrils of blond hair away from my eyes and smirked softly at the sound of light snoring next to me.

I hadn't heard Ori tip-toe into the room at some time in the night, but obviously she'd decided to use the bedroom that Bilbo had chosen for the two us on our first meeting, instead of joining her brothers in another guest-room. How she'd managed to convince Dori and Nori to agree with that idea with when her siblings were being so damn protective of her, I didn't have the faintest idea.

I glanced out the window and noticed that it was very early in the morning as it was still quite dark. No noise could be heard from within Bilbo's smyle other than the snores creeping into my ears from behind the walls.

Everyone else must still have been asleep, and as much as I wanted to get out of bed, the warmth and closeness of another person snuggling against my side froze me. The sound of Ori's steady breathing reminded me of a time in America when my sisters and I had all shared one large bed in one of the guest bedrooms whilst our mother had a bed just for herself.

So I stayed, for a moment longer thinking of last night following the song of the Lonely Mountain. I'd been exhausted by then but I had known that I couldn't just leave Bilbo's smial looking like a tornado had slipped inside to turn everything upside down.

I'd expected a great number of dissatisfied grumbling and moaning when I'd bade the group of ''guests'' to help me clean everything in Bilbo's house, but I hadn't been happy about their laziness either and I'd showed how I'd felt with putting my foot down; and firmly reminded them that Bilbo would have been in the rights to kick everyone into the night for turning up without his approval.

Most of the dwarves had agreed to join me on the cleaning mission after I'd pointed out those facts; and most I meant Fili, Kili, Gloin, Bifur, Bofur, Bombur, Dori and Nori.

Well, the latter had been bullied into agreeing by his elder brother's 'tender' ministrations.

That left Thorin, Balin, Dwalin, Oin and Ori showing their appreciation by planting their bottoms on the chairs surrounding the fireplace around the dinner-table.

Balin and Oin I couldn't begrudge, as they were rather old dwarrows. And poor little Ori was almost asleep on his haunches in the comfy, squishy armchair, her young face a tad pale and pained as she rubbed at her ankle which had apparently started aching again from her having walked on it.

But the other two were still more than hail to help us, but for some reason they decided to be a pair of royal asses; and I found great joy in causing them to yelp and grumble when I (accidentally) poked Dwalin in the butt with the tip of the wooden broom handle and made his Royal Highness raise his cumbersome feet a number of times when I swiped the same area twice to make the floor perfectly clean.

There was a shit-eating grin on my face the whole time, and it only grew wider when I overheard Nori whimpering: '' Mahal's Bal- OUCH, Dori! I'm jus' sayin' what your all thinkin'; this privy bloody reeks! An' which of you bleedin' dunces left feces on the toilet rim?!''

'' I didn't want to even imagine what's been going on with the bloody toilet! Thanks a load, Nori!'' I grumbled out loud, rolling my blue eyes at the ceiling even as Ori couldn't stop giggling at his brother's misfortune.

...

Finally I decided that enough was enough and that it was my time to rejoin the world. Still grinning at the memory of the dwarrows submitting to my wishes, I quietly slipped off the bed and gently touched Ori's forehead with the back of my hand.

She was warm, but not the kind of warm that indicated she was running a fever.

Smiling in relief and amusement when she gave a faint mumble in her sleep, I wrapped Ori in the soft blankets and patch-work quilt I'd abandoned before putting my other layers of clothing back on (I'd slept in my white tank-top and thick black leggings).

I finished up my morning rituals by brushing my wavy hair until it shined and braided it tightly into a long braid that I knew would stay in place.

I then grabbed my red backpack and coat (which I'd ventured out to retrieve from the wood-shed last night) from near the door and tip-toed out the door and towards the kitchen to make myself a strong Morning cup of coffee.

But once I'd reached the kitchens I realized something important as I stared at the medieval kitchen equipment; I'd never made coffee the old way before. Sure, I knew how to make a fire with matches (but Gloin had taken the flint back in with his belongings) and yeah, I had made coffee in a coffee-pot before but the beans had been pre-powdered.

My mood turn sour and I slapped a hand over my face before making my way to the hall and quietly sinking into a chair that sat around the table (shoved into the hall of Bilbo's house last night).

I didn't know wether to laugh or cry at the ridiculousness that I had no idea how to make myself that one last cup (or two) of coffee that would help get through the day of travel.

To think that I couldn't even do that, let alone use a weapon to save a life was laughable. It was pathetic. I was pathetic!

'' Yritä nyt olla hyödyksi,'' I muttered out loud,glaring into my hands,'' kun en edes osaa keittää yhtä hemmetin kahvikupposta ( You try being of use, when I can't even make one damn cup of coffee).''

I would probably have been fuming over my inability to be of use a lot longer, if not for a couple of voices out in the garden catching my attention.

I quietly walk over to the window and peered outside. I spotted Dori and Nori standing out in the gardens facing each other and arguing with raised voices.

I frowned as I planted myself on a chair closest to the window.

It wasn't like I truly wanted to know what they were arguing about, but last night as I was listening to the dwarrows sing that very deep song of their lost kingdom, I had noticed an underlying tension between the two elder ''Ri'' siblings that was always hidden whenever Ori had been aware of what had been going on around her.

I hadn't heard the beginnings of the arguement, but I hadn't needed to, for the things I did hear were disconcorting enough.

I winced as Nori blatantly blamed his elder brother for having 'mothered' their sister to the point where she'd become too soft for his liking.

The accusing nail was hammered deeper as Nori explained his reasons for why he'd left their home years ago to begin a life out in the wild in great detail. One significant reason being him afraid that Dori would try to smother him, too, and make him weak.

I winced a second time. Such cruel words spoken before a dangerous journey wasn't the smartest thing to do on Nori's part. Especially when none of the company could be certain wether they'd make it to the end of their journey.

I could only imagine what Dori's expression might have been at the time, but no doubt something entirely opposite of happy.

Whatever had caused their relationship to to turn so sour, I had no idea, but it was obvious that Nori's words would soon drag the elder dwarrow to a breaking point.

And as if proving my thoughts correct, Dori's next words were spoken with a snarl: '' I will NOT be taking anymore insults from you, Nori! Yes, I might've become overbearing when it came to Ori's education, but I only wanted what was best for her! The education was all worth it when she became a Scribe for the royal family. You have NO right to say that I've ruined our sister!''

I quietly stood up and looked out the window, only to wince and duck out of sight as Dori turned and made his way up the old stone stairs and towards the door.

'' Tyhmä,tyhmä,tyhmä (Stupid, stupid, stupid)!'' I muttered to myself, hoping I hadn't been noticed eavesdropping.

Loud noises and the sound of a scuffle outside me caught my interest for the second time in a short while and I rouse to take another peek outside.

My mouth dropped at the sight of the two brothers exchanging physical blows at each other. '' Ei helvetti!'' I muttered out loud in disbelief as Dori dealt a punishing blow to the side of Nori's head which had the slighter dwarrow stumbling backwards with a grunt of pain.

'' But you know its the truth, Dori!'' Nori snarled out as he righted himself, his blue-grey eyes resembling two cold icicles.'' If you'd allowed me to train Ori the way I'd believed to have been the right way, she wouldn't have needed to run from that orc-pack! She wouldn't have needed to put her life in another's hands; or needed help to get to Bag end!''

I gasped at that. Why throw me into their verbal arguement?! Ei saatana!

Dori's voice sounded extremely strained as he replied: '' We should be thankful that Maija hadn't left Ori on the road my herself, when she'd been coming down with an illness. And especially thankful that she hadn't attempted to slay our sister on the spot, when Ori had showed her distrust towards her upon finding out Maija knew about Gandalf's wherebouts inside the Shire.''

'' Tha's exactly my poin', Dori!'' Nori spat out.'' Ori had bin severely weakened by the illness and if tha' lass had decide' it would be best to kill our sister, than she could have succeeded. Ori was lucky that day! ''

I closed my eyes, breathing in deep breaths of air.

Lucky? Did Nori truly believed I would have killed his sister in my rage?!

Yes, I had been afraid (and resentful) after Ori had attacked me, but still... I had been raised in a world where killing was an inexcusable crime!

And even here, in a world where people did kill each other in combat, I would still think twice over wether to kill someone from the race of men, dwarrows or elves.

My eyes flew open as Nori snarled something in 'Khuszdul'', but whatever it was it made Dori's eyes flash with rage. He uttered a scathing 'something' in the same language before growling in the common tongue:

'' If you wish to hold a grudge towards me, Nori, then do as you wish. But DON'T show that grudge around Ori! Or Maija, for that matter!''

I blinked at those words, as I wasn't expecting Dori to defend me so vehemently. So Why? I would have been less surprised with Dori being suspicious and condemning with the kind of manners I'd displayed and the kind of clothes I was wearing.

And Nori had taken a step back at his brother's words, a strange expression on his face that I couldn't place, and didn't have time to stand around and figure out.

I ducked away from the window as Dori once again made his way up the stairs and to the round green door.

I leaned forward and leaned my elbows against the smooth wood of the table and rested my head against my open heart was pounding in my chest as I went over everything I'd heard.

It was really quite obvious now that despite his earlier actions towards me the russet-brown haired dwarrow didn't trust me, and I suppose it was valid that he didn't, despite Ori had been the one to attack me first.

And If he didn't hold any trust towards me, then how would I be able to initiate trust with the middle- son of Fitoria?

I wouldn't be! It was as simple as that!

I would just simply have to try and act normally around Nori and watch my back.

I uttered a low groan and let myself fall across the table. Back in my world there were occasions where you did have to be aware of the potential to be attacked by people who were conciously looking for trouble.

But it wasn't everyday-life. At least not in the country I'd lived in.

But here...

Nori sure was a prime example of how dangerous and sneaky a person could be if you didn't watch yourself. Especially with his thieving ways...

'' EI SAATANA!'' I groaned as sudden realization hit me like a falling boulder. I couldn't refrain from slapping a hand across my face, hard.

Yesterday when Nori had been putting his thieving hands into work, it hadn't been anything playful to rile me up.

It had been a sneaky sort of warning towards of what could happen if I were to bring harm on any member of the company.

I hadn't realized the truth of his actions back then, and I don't think Nori had ever wanted me to find out what he truly thought of me but in light of what I'd heard just minutes ago, the sneaky gesture was now all too clear to me.

Bring concious harm to my siblings in any way, and your back will be stabbed...

''  _With your own weapons,_ _most probably_ _._ _Forget that warning, and your in trouble._ '' I thought tensely, my forehead furrowed with worry, just as the sound of the door open and close could be heard. ''  _Someone better teach me how to defend myself soon so I can be more_ _at_ _ease. Otherwise, I'll just end up telling Nori I don't trust him_ _w_ _ith my actions._

My head snapped up and I sprung to my feet the second I heard a loud gasp echoe through the room.

' _'_ _H_ _ienoa_ _(great)_!'' I though inwardly, cringing as I realized that Dori must have noticed me in the dining-room.

I stiffened slightly as I watched him approach me carefully. I probably looked like a skittish animal for the second time in two days, I morbidly thought as the dwarrow stopped inches from the chair I had been sitting on just moments ago.

'' You heard all that?''

I really just wanted to leave this room and put as much distance between this awkward moment as I could, but when I looked up into the eyes of the dwarrow standing in front of me, something stopped me.

It could have been the very put-out, and sorrowful expression on Dori's face or the very odd, warm feeling that rouse from within me as I looked at him.

A feeling that prompted me to stay in the room.

I relaxed my posture, hesitantly turning my back on Dori and briefly glanced out the window.

I could see that Nori had seated himself on the bench overlooking Bilbo's garden and was staring out into the distance with stiff shoulders.

'' Yeah, I heard most of it.'' I admitted dryly. I did feel quilty for having eavesdropped, but at the same time morbidly glad to now know that I wasn't truly trusted amongst some members of the company.

Even justified to hear what I was being seen through others eyes.

'' Lass, if you speak of this to anyone...'' the dwarrow spoke through clenched teeth.

'' I won't be speaking of this to anyone, Dori, I promise.'' I answered him stiffly, ignoring the stab of hurt that he would think I'd be a tattle-tale.

I gritted my teeth and leaned my palms againsts the table. I rested my full weight on my palms, glaring at the surface of the wood.'' Its not my place to tell anyone, anyway.''

My answer came out laced with sarcasm, and I knew it. I didn't dare to look up into the dwarrow's eyes, but if I'd done it, I would have seen Dori's brow wrinkling in a frown as he slumped into a chair.

'' You were never meant to overhear any of it, Maija.'' Dori spoke softly.

'' But I did, so let's skip that part and make it known that I no longer know whom I can really trust not to hurt me anymore.'' I muttered out bitterly.

'' I can understand why it would be hard for you, but whatever Nori might think,'' Dori replied quietly,'' I know you would not have harmed our Ori further than you had in that moment of distrust. There is just something in your manners that made me realize the sincerity of your words last night when you and my sister both recalled your first meeting to the company.''

I looked up at these words, my expression still disbelieving, and was surprised to see the slight tremors of his shoulders as Dori breathed in and out.

'' And your reaction only makes the truth so much clearer to me. You don't deserve Nori's distrust and suspicions.'' he continued with pain in his voice.

I winced at his tone of voice. Honestly, who could blame the dwarrow for sounding the way he did. After all, he'd gone through so much with just travelling to get to Bag End and having that orc-pack attack their camp.

And then their little sister had gone missing during the raid and the two brothers must have been frantic when they'd had no idea what had come of her.

Nori (apparently very affected by what had happened and totally disregarding the truth that his elder brother had been as scared as he'd been), deciding to blame Dori for Ori being too soft must have been another vicious blow.

And to top it all of, Dori found out that I'd been eavesdropping on an arguement I was never supposed to overhear.

I really couldn't hide that the arguement had affected me deeply, too, but I felt he was sincere in his words towards me. It was better to at least hope that there were two of the ''Ri' siblings who didn't find me insincere.

I hesitantly walked over to him and put a hand on his shoulder in show of comfort.

Dori stiffened immediately at my initiated touch, and I would have pulled away my hand had he not suddenly put his own much larger hand on top of mine.

'' Thank you for trusting me.'' I told him quietly.'' I know its not really any of my business to say, but I feel you should make an effort to patch things up with Nori. If something happens to either of you on the course of the journey, those words are going to eat you both up from the inside.''

Dori looked up into my face and grimaced.

'' I have,'' Dori muttered wearily,'' tried to put up with the scamp for years. I've put up with his stealing and his ''almost insults'' at my tendencies to mother him and Ori (Ori more than him). But this... I've had enough with the insults. I WILL NOT put up with them anymore. If he wants to not appreciate my ways of taking care of my own family, then he can do and think as he pleases. As long as he doesn't pull little Ori into our dispute.''

'' He is still your brother.'' I pointed out to him.'' And he'll realize how much he cares about you before the journey is over.''

Dori grimaced again, shoulders slumping. '' But do I have the patients to put up with him, even if he were to want to be my brother?! That, I do not know.''

'' As I've already said, he is still your brother.'' I chided the dwarrow. '' You need to put effort in forgiving him. The two of you are going to need each other wether you realize it or not.'

'' I will try.'' Dori answered dully, staring down at the floor between where we were standing.

My eyes were suddenly compassionate as I looked into his blue ones. It was painfully obvious that Dori loved and cared for both his brothers equally, but he was hurt by Nori's words, and the hurt was causing a rift to be formed.

And the rift would not be so easily mended unless both of them were willing to make it mend.

Dori sighed as he finally pulled his hand away. '' Would you like some coffee, lass?'' he asked me with a hesitant smile.

I smiled at him thankfully.'' Yes, Dori, I wouldn't mind having a large steaming mug of coffee. Or two. Thank you.''

'' Well then,'' Dori answered with a nod and a wider smile, pulling me towards the kitchen area,'' let's get to it, shall we?!''

I grinned and followed along without a fuss, happy to have some hot coffee in me before the rigorous riding with the ponies (the very likely choice of transport we would be using at the start of this journey).

…

Dori and I were enjoyed a nice, hot full pot of coffee and quietly talking about anything and everything that came to mind.

'' I started school in the land I was born in,'' I was in the process of telling him of my life back on Earth,'' Lappeenranta, Finland, but my mother, my sisters and I moved to another land that is called America for a whole turn of the seasons whilst our dad was getting used to his new job in a land called Belgium. During that time the rest of us stayed at our grandmother's house in America.''

'' Wasn't very difficult to get used to the new culture there?'' Dori asked with widened eyes.'' And such distance between husband, wife and children!?''

''School was difficult for a while since my sisters and I had only tiny knowledge of the new language you know as the common tongue when we first arrived in America. Mother was an American by birth but she'd been learning Finnish and she rarely spoke the common tongue with us children.'' I answered, fiddling with the straps of my red backpack.'' But I was only eight years old, and my sisters were five and four years old. This enabled me to learn to speak in sentences after a whole six moon cycles had past. My youngest sister, though, learned to do it more quickly.''

Dori blinked at me, no doubt trying to wrap his head around what I was telling him. No doubt it was difficult for him to understand why our family had needed to move so far away from the land we'd lived in, and us children born in, to find a new home.

'' We moved back to Finland for the summer following the year we spent in America. Our father had traveled back to Finland to be with us, before we all headed to Belgium together. Our old house was already in sale when we returned from America.'' I continued with a sad sort of remembrance. '' Unfortunately, mom wasn't able to stay with us for long. She was very sick, and died only a year later from said illness. I was only ten, and my sisters even younger.''

'' She was sick?!'' Dori inhaled, looking incredibly sad for my family.'' You three little ones were so young to have lost a mother. Ori was only a wee baby when our mother passed away. Her lungs had never been quite the same following Smaug's attack on Erebor, and bearing Ori had been extremely difficult for her. She couldn't handle the aftermath of the delivery. Ori's father had died in the events of a mine accident before her birth which left me to raise two little brothers. ''

''Oh, I'm sorry for your losses.'' I answered with sympathy.'' Our father found someone who made her happy again, and he didn't need to raise all of us on his own. Well, as for how my life continued, my sisters and I started school in Belgium but four years later I moved back to the country I was born in. But that was just me. My father and stepmother still live in Belgium, but both my younger siblings moved to another land our kind call England once they'd finished school.

'' So now your saying your entire family was separated by choice.'' Dori exclaimed with a rather stunned expression. '' Why in Mahal's name would you all go along with it?''

'' Life's choices,'' I answered,'' and something else that is known as work. Women have the same sort of privileged as men when it comes to the way of life and we aren't always expected to stay as housewives and mind the children. Besides, distance doesn't really matter as long as your family loves you. We had our ways of communicating through long distances that are faster than sending letters. Such as this.''

I reached into my pack and pulled out my yellow-shelled cellphone.'' Though I can't get it to work in this world.'' I added glumly, glaring down at the blank screen.

Dori reached out to put his hand on top of mine but pulled back when the two of us heard the ''creak'' of the door opening in the hallway.

A tell-tale warning of Nori's entrance to the smyle.

Dori's expression hardened for a moment before turning unreadable.

Nervousness flooded me and for a moment I was afraid, until Dori's kind hand on my arm calmed me down to a point where I was able to school my expression back to neutral.

Dori lifted his hand just in time, as moments later Nori entered the dining area.

I looked up at the younger dwarrow and noticed that he'd paused in surprise at seeing me sitting around and drinking coffee with his brother.

Something else, that I couldn't place, flashed in his blue-grey eyes as he looked from me to Dori.

I gave him a nod and a small smile as he approached our table and offered him an extra mug before gesturing towards the still rather full coffee-pot.

'' Morning, Nori,'' I greeted him,''care for some coffee?''

'' Morning.'' Nori answered with a half-hearted smile of his own,'' And aye, I'll have a mug-full.''

He glanced at his brother who tensed slightly, gripping the coffee-pot a little harder than necessary and avoided the star-haired dwarrow's eyes.

I wanted to put a hand on Dori's arm to calm him down less he accidentally break the coffee-pot, but I was afraid to give Nori any clues that I'd overheard their arguement as the middle-brother finally slid into a chair on the other side of the table.

Right across from me.

I handed him the extra mug and Dori poured him coffee, all the while resolutely avoiding his brother's sharp eyes.

Nori, too, was tensely looking away from his brother and was sipping the hot coffee with pursed lips.

The tension was so palpable that I was afraid it would erupt into another arguement with the explosive power of a supervolcano.

It was extremely awkward to be stuck between these two surly figures, and I needed to defuse the situation before the eruption happened a second time.

And inside Bilbo's smyle it wasn't a welcoming thought. Especially if they wanted to keep their enflamed relationship secret from Ori.

The awkwardness became too much for me to bare, and in my need to lighten things up I started spouting out funny stories that involved my cousin and I getting into loads of trouble for ditching my two sisters and running off somewhere.

By the time others were beginning to wake up in their guestrooms, I had managed to get Nori laughing rather heartily at my tales.

Even Dori was chuckling as I was finishing my latest tale that involved going under my grandparent's neighbor's electric fence and running from the cows grazing in the pasture as we'd trecked to the neighbor's there was the bright idea that had come to our minds, that we would chase the neighbors pet rabbits which ultimately ended with us running into a room filled to the ankles with sludgy, reeking cow-dung.

''Ugh, the memory of that stench,'' I finished, wrinkling my nose in disgust, '' is unforgetable.''

'' Served you two rascals right,'' Dori chuckled, shaking his head at me as Nori and I howled with laughter at my cousin's and mine childhood shenanigans,'' for chasing your poor neighbors pet rabbits.''

'' Well, it seemed like a fun plan at the time, Dori.'' I answered, eyes twinkling from mirth as I swallowed a mouthful of the cooling coffee in my mug.'' And we were just children back then.''

…

The large pot of coffee sitting between us on the able top was almost empty by the time the first dwarrows stumbled bleary-eyed into the dining-area.

Bombur and Ori being the first to arrive (no doubt the ginger-haired dwarrow was too hungry to have wanted to stay sleeping).

I looked up and smiled kindly at Bombur and bade him a good-morning (which he returned with wide grin of his own which quite resembled Bofur's), before the stout dwarrow waddled into the kitchen in his search for food.

I then waved at Ori who waved back as she made her way towards our table. I was happy to see that her limp wasn't as prominent as it had been all through last evening.

Nori stretched his back and yawned as he suddenly stood up from his seat. He patted his sister on the back on his way around the table.

Dori and I shared a knowing look as Nori took something from the folds of his pocket and slinked off to follow Bombur in his search for something to make for breakfast.

Dori pursed his lips together tightly and I muttered something along the lines of: '' Ei tarvi kahteen kertaan miettiä mihin se äijä hävisi ( you don't have to guess twice as to where the guy's gone).''

'' Hmmm... what are you saying?'' Ori mumbled at me sleepily as his elder brother poured her the last of the coffee.

'' Nothing important, Ori.'' I yawned out, smiling at the bleary-eyed dwarrowdam who slumped down on the chair beside me and returned my smile.

…

Eventually all the dwarrows eager to sample some good breakfast, and Gandalf, had woken up and were clustered around the small dining-room table.

I grinned as Dori handed over another full mug of coffee to me along with my share of food that consisted of bacon, ham, cheese and bread (probably found in Bilbo's other pantries; and no need to double-guess who had opened them up without a key).

I was very quiet as I ate my food and looked around the table at the others. I really hoped I'd get to know them all better during this journey; to learn how much more wasn't shown in the films.

So I discreetly peered at them all, noting the slight differences in appearance to what they'd looked like in the Hobbit films (there really where subtle differences which quite suited the realistic part of me. I mean, why should the dwarves look exactly like they'd done in the film?!

Their manners turned out to be quite the same as they'd been in the films, however, but they weren't roudy this morning like they'd all been last night.

Only Fili and Kili were being loud in their conversation with Bofur who was being just as noisy.

I had to chuckle at the trio for a moment before returning back to my half-finished breakfast.

...

As we were finishing our meal, Thorin Oakenshield urged us to finish up quickly and gather up our belongings. We would apparently be leaving soon after breakfast.

I shook my head with a sigh and headed towards the kitchen to clean up my plate and mugs.

I had nothing to pack except for the belongings I'd had with me when I was brought to Middle-Earth.

Once the crockery were almost shining from being clean, I returned to the dining-room and wriggled into my blue coat and shouldered my red backpack (that I'd left under my chair) before sitting down again to wait for the others.

'' Here, Maija,'' Gandalf spoke up suddenly as he walked over to me and handed over a folded parchment,'' it is from Bilbo.''

'' Hmmm...?'' I hummed in question, blinking down at the letter the wizard had handed over. I quickly pulled the parchment open and read it over quickly, then a second time as shock took over.

It read:

_**Miss Maija,** _

_**As perturbed as I was from the unexpected arrival of Thorin Oakenshield's company into my smyle.** _

_**Very much unvited, I should add, I hadn't forgotten that I had invited miss Ori and you to my home. Please assure Miss Ori that I hadn't found her presence to have been a problem.** _

_**As for you having to go on this ''Journey', 'I find it unsatisfactory on your part and wished Gandalf could have found a solution to your problem without having to resort to asking you join the company.** _

_**And yet, I truly wish you the best of luck on your long journey to Rivendell and that you will find your way back to your world and be reunited with your family.** _

_**I have made it my duty to give you some equipment for the journey.** _

_**These equipment belonged to my dear mother, Belladonna Baggins, and if possible, I'd like to see them returned.** _

_**But if such requiest proves to be impossible, I won't begrudge you for not fulfilling it. My mother had a wonderful tendency to find joy in simply helping others in need, and I'm sure she would have given these equipment to you without asking them to be returned.** _

_**You will find everything packed and ready inside my mother's 'Glory-box'.** _

_**Sincerely Bilbo Baggins** _

I felt tears appearing in the corner of my eyes as I read through the letter a third time in a row.

No one, apart from my family or my one true friend back at home, had ever shown me such kindness and care.

Bilbo Baggins was truly a saint in the form of a gentle-hobbit.

I was aware of Gandalf looking at me as I wiped away the tears that tried to sneak up into view of others and handed the short letter over to the Istari who read it over quickly, a fond smirk appearing on his wrinkled beard-clad face as glanced at the paintings of two hobbits (no doubt Belladonna and Bungo Baggins) sitting over the fireplace.

''Blessed Belladonna Baggins,''' Gandalf voiced out brightly as he handed back the letter,'' your son is more like than even he realizes. He will find his thirst for adventure soon. There is no doubt about it.''

I rolled my eyes at the wizard's logic and looked over the words one last time.

Was it really necessary for me to take something that had belonged to the poor hobbit's mother, without certainty that it would be returned?

I rolled my eyes again as Gandalf asked: '' You would turn down his offer, lass?''

'' I just don't like the idea of taking something that could be important to him.'' I muttered quietly.

'' And yet it would be beneficial for you to accept what is given to you,'' the wizard answered and lowered a hand on my shoulder,'' for your belongings don't cover even the barest minimal of acceptable equipment you shall need on the road.''

'' Fine,'' I muttered, irritated a the wizard's meddling,'' I will accept his generosity.''

'' You will find Belladonna's 'Glory-box over there.'' Gandalf answered, his voice irritatingly bright as he gestured towards the hallway leading towards the round green door.

The mentioned glory box was a beautiful piece of furniture made out of wood that looked like chestnut. And the furniture looked more like a chair than a box (or a chest).

'' Hmmm...'' I hummed quietly, as I noticed Balin sitting by the fireplace in the living-room writing something on a long piece of parchment.

I walked over to the snow-haired dwarrow and peeked over his shoulder with interest. It was a note for Bilbo Baggins. I gave a small chuckle when I realized had an idea as to what to do before getting out the equipment from the Glory-box.

Balin was about to finish the letter with his signature, when I gently put my hand on top his bigger, time-worn hand and stilled the path of the quill on top the letter.

'' May I write something to Bilbo, Balin?'' I asked him, showing the old dwarrow the letter Bilbo had written to me.

'' Aye, lass, go right ahead.''

Balin had looked very surprised at my executed touch, but had quickly composed himself and answered me with a kind smile as soon as he'd looked over the letter.

He stood up and let me sit down in the vacated chair.

I immediately sat down and lifted the quill that Balin had left in the ink-bottle. I took the excess ink off by scraping it on the side of the bottle before poising the quill over the parchment, wondering what exactly I should write to the kindly hobbit.

Finally, I simply poised the quill some four inches down from where Balin had finished his own writing, and wrote as neatly as possible with my brow furrowed in concentration.

_**Dear Bilbo Reppuli( Baggins)** _

_**Olen erittäin kiitollinen kaikesta (I'm truly thankful for everything). For your hospitality and care for the durance of my stay; as unexpected as it was. I've come to carry fond memories of my short stay in your homely smyle.** _

_**I also understand why you would ask for your mother's belongings. She was an important person in your life.** _

_**I shall make sure the elves of Rivendell will find some way of returning what you've allowed me to borrow, Bilbo.** _

_**You are a wonderful, kind hobbit Bilbo and I wish you the best of health and abundance in your life. I will carry the short friendship we shared in my heart for the rest of my life.** _

_**Sincerely Maija (Reetta Ranta- Aho)** _

I cringed and blushed slightly at the messy scrawl displayed under the beautiful writing done by Balin.

'' Looks like I must practice writing, too,'' I muttered gesturing towards the disgrace of a letter I'd finished, '' for this is rather horrible hand-writing.''

The snow- haired dwarrow only chuckled good naturally at the embarrassment displayed on my face and patted me on the shoulder.

'' I'd say it is rather well done for someone who mentioned yesterday evening that she has never used a quill before.'' he answered, taking the quill from my hand as I handed it back. He dipped it in the ink-bottle.'' And it is not often you see woman, of the race of men, who display knowledge for writing. Its rather refreshing sight to witness.''

'' Hmm...'' I hummed, looking down at the parchment between us as Balin put in his own signature. Now that I thought about it, the female population in my world (in most countries) were rather blessed to be allowed the kind of education that was given to them yearly.

I ran a finger over the rough parchment and marvelled how different it felt compared to the paper used in my nowadays in my country. So rustic! And the ink and quill, as well.

But like pencils and pens, these were used for writing.

'' Balin, have you finished writing that letter to our 'burglar'?'' Thorin's loud voice could be heard from the hall leading to the door of Bag End.

Balin looked up with a sigh and put the quill back in it's holder and rescrewed the lid of the ink-bottle.

I lifted the parchment and set it down on the same table I'd remembered seeing in the film. The one sitting next to the round window.

Balin reached out from over my shoulder and set Bilbo's unsigned contract next to the open parchment.

I stared at the contract for a long moment, reading through the words. My legs had, all of a sudden, started to feel like they were glued to the floor as sudden fear for what might happen to me on the journey in the wild made me hesitant to leave the safety of Bag End.

It was Balin's gentle hand on my shoulder that broke through my conscientiousness moment and steered me towards the rest of the company.

I made my way towards Bilbo's mother's 'Glory-box', under the curious and confused eyes of the dwarrows standing around the door and proceeded to open the box carefully and respectively.

I smirked as Gandalf explained what Bilbo had written to me in his letter and pulled out a beautiful, cornflower blue cloak (that was thick and made waterproof) and clasped the copper clasps closed so that the fabric was over by my collarbones. The cloak was feminine, which deduced the logic that it had belonged to Belladonna Baggins.

Next I pulled out the travelling pack filled with all the essentials, and the sleeping mat and blanket attached to the flaps.

_''Everything_ _did look to be in good shape despite not having been used in years_.'' I thought (inwardly thanking Bilbo again) as I swung the bigger, heavier pack on top my much smaller pack (effectively squishing it against my back).''  _Bilbo must have kept his mother's things well maintained_ _e_ _ven if he hasn't used any of it himself.''_

'' You look very nice with that cloak.'' Ori chirped in with a smile.'' The color brings out your blue eyes.''

'' Good thing I like blue, then.'' I answered with a laugh, fishing out my retractable pocket knife and '' puukko'' from the outside coat-pockets and stashing the lot in the inside pockets of my sailor blue- coat.

'' You might want to take this, too.'' Gandalf spoke up, holding a hobbit-sized axe used for cutting firewood.'' It was next to the Glory box, along with another note said to borrow this from him.''

As some dwarrows gave uttered noises of surprise and even congratulating Bilbo for his un-Hobbitish thinking, I simply uttered a loud: '' OH!'' and took the axe into my hands.

My eyes going wide as I inspected the blade, noting that it looked very new and not having been used once. I knew that for certain, having used the older one several times last evening. '' This is... too much from him, Gandalf. I couldn't possibly...''

'' You are going to need a weapon, young lady.'' Gandalf argued with a twinkle in his eyes.'' And Bilbo Baggins has kindly given you the kind which you have used in the past and can wield even it its not in a battle. One which you shall accept without further arguement. Time is short and we must be off, soon.''

'' Confounded old geezers and their meddling in other people's decisions!'' I burst out in frustration and stepped towards the wizard whilst brandishing the blade in Gandalf's direction with one hand.'' When am I allowed to make a decision without you nulling it in a blink of an eye?''

I shook the blade slightly before lowering it to my side with a ''huff''.

Thankfully none of the dwarrows had seen my actions as threatening enough to cause a scene inside the smyle, and hadn't acted upon me stepping towards the wizard with the sharp axe in my hands.

The damn wizard hadn't even flinched as the axe was lifted at him.

The dwarrows did look a little surprised, though, and Fili, Kili and Bofur were quietly laughing at the scene I'd made in front of Bilbo's door.

I was still glowering at Gandalf as Dwalin cae over to me and took the blade from my slackened fingers.

'' This blade is of decent quality for one wrought by men.'' Dwalin said to me as he inspected the small axe.'' You better do as the wizard says and accept this show of kindness from the halfling.''

'' He is a 'Hobbit', Dwalin.'' I answered, taking back the axe as he handed it over.'' Very well, if you all insist...''

I rubbed the bridge of my nose is exasperation,'' I will take this weapon.''

Dwalin's answering nod was firm as he helped me find a way to carry the axe without it being in the way.

In the end, the axe handle was slipped into the rope- belt Dwalin had made for me from the equipment Bilbo had packed for me to use.

'' Now, If you are all ready to head out, '' Thorin Oakenshield spoke up, sweeping his eyes over his fourteen- person company gathered near the door with all their packs and choice of weapons,'' we shall leave for the 'Green Dragon Inn'.''

'' _He sure was eager to head out_ ,'' I thought dryly as I nodded at the crown less king, ''  _And now he is in a rush_!''

My expression was somber as I glanced back at the smyle that had been my sanctuary for the past, after wondering whether I'd have to sleep outside with the elements; without knowing if there was civilization close by, staying at Bilbo's had been like staying in the home of a king.

For the second time that morning the fear and uncertainty for what was to come, reared its ugly head and made my legs freeze on the doorstep. My hand was suddenly gripping tightly at the wooden handle of the axe strapped to my belt and I was quite sure my face showed my apprehension to everyone.

It was embarrasing to say the least, to be showing your fear in front of these people who'd seen many dangers in their life, if not war.

I could practically feel Thorin Oakenshield, Dwalin and Gloin giving me looks; and I was quite sure they weren't encouraging for my reputation among the group.

''  _Whoa_! ''

I almost jumped as a large hand fell on my shoulder and looked back to see Dori standing beside me with a caring look on his face.

'' _A mother-hen, definitely_.'' I thought with a smile, allowing the dwarrow to lead me out the door and down the old stone stairs of Bilbo's house.

Then the smile abruptly slipped as I could feel that same warm feeling flooding me (as the one that had occurred early this morning before the others had woken) from the inside and like before it brought up a lot of questions to my head as to what it meant.

The feeling was too strong to be ignored, and it had happened whenever I looked at Dori in certain ways, or touched him. And even more bizarre, I always felt safe in his presence despite knowing him for less than a day.

I glanced at the dwarrow from the corner of my eyes every now and then as we made our way towards the 'Green Dragon Inn', wondering if perhaps he felt these strange sensations as clearly as I did, and whether he knew exactly what they were about.

Dori happened to glance back at me at the same instance as I turned my blue eyes in his direction and... Saakutin saakutti!

For a split moment I'd actually been flooded with how he was feeling. Dori was well aware of what this was, and was… afraid?! Shocked? Even joyful?

''  _Ei hemmetti_!'' I thought, rubbing a hand across my face. My heart was still pounding in the aftermath of his thoughts being shoved at me.

Was that… what I think it was? Was this whatever I'd read in a number of fanfiction stories? Did I actually have a ''One''? Had I found a true soulmate?

''Voivatko asiat enää huonommaksi muuttua (could things possibly turn any worse than this)?!'' I thought with an inward moan.

I had no idea what to think of the possibility of Dori being my 'One'. I was on a 'freaking' mission to find a way home to my loved ones.

I hadn't been looking for a boyfriend to share the rest of my life. Actually, I'd never even dated in my past for a reason that I hadn't found… the person I could truly be happy with?!

'' No on tämä niin saatanan hanurista (well isn't this such a freaking butt-load of fun)!'' I grumbled out loud, drawing questioning looks from Ori, Fili and Kili whom were walking near me.

I grinned sheepishly at them and was immediately drawn into an excited conversation with the lot of them.

Fili and Kili asking me questions of my home world and I eagerly drew myself into the conversation, wanting to curb their curiosity and not be left in somber thoughts.

And I wasn't disappointed. The conversation didn't fail to bring me out of my funk and to forget the queer feelings that had brought a lot of difficult questions to my mind.

I never noticed the contemplative, worried expression appear on Dori's face before he masked it and quickened his steps so that he was walking with the middle of the company; when before he'd been staying at the back of the group with us young ones.

Nor did I realize that the Middle sibling ' Ri ' had slowed down his steps and was glancing at me every now and then with the sharp eyes of a spy. And hiding worries of his own under a mask of indifference.

...

 

END OF CHAPTER 6

...

P.S. I've read so many stories where one of the younger dwarrows, such as Fili and Kili, always find themselves with someone to love. Thought I'd try something different. I've always had a soft spot for the three 'Ri' brothers in the film (Nori being a favorite). It won't be instant romance in this story, though.

And the life- story ''Maija'' told Dori is an almost mirror of my own past.

**Author's Note:**

> Yes, I didn't tell the adventurer's name yet. I'm saving it for later. I'll just try and be more detailed in other parts of the story to make things interesting. 
> 
> Now, the places I mentioned do exist in an area called Kuominanmäki, Finland.  
> In fact Nurkkakivi (Corner-rock) is a place where my sisters and I, and grandma, often went mushroom picking for those delicious funnel-chanterelles. And my sisters and I still go mushroom picking together whenever possible.


End file.
